The Chief Executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Gbenga Komolafe,
Tackle Worsening Insecurity with Urgency, Diplomatic
Tact Before Trump Acts, Adeboye Tells Tinubu
Says Russia or China can’t save Nigeria if US strikes Don’t test Trump’s resolve, US lawmaker warns FG
Sunday Ehigiator
The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye, has called on President Bola Tinubu to tackle Nigeria’s worsening
security challenges with urgency and diplomatic tact, while responding to concerns recently raised by United States
President Donald Trump. This is just as a United States lawmaker, Riley Moore, has warned the
federal government against underestimating President Trump’s determination to act against the continued killing of Christians in Nigeria. Speaking after the
Anambra Governorship Election: Soludo Leads
Insists he'll win even if opponents buy votes at N100,000 each Obi, Ukachukwu, Moghalu, others condemn vote-buying Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu hails peaceful, hitch-free poll Obi, Moghalu lose polling units to APC, APGA
Chiemelie Ezeobi, Dike Onwuamaeze, Sunday Ehigiator in Lagos and DavidChyddy Eleke in Awka
The Governor of Anambra State and candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, was leading 15 other contestants in yesterday’s governorship election in the state, which was marred by vote-buying and low voter turnout.
The election, which was the first conducted by the new Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan, marked a remarkable improvement in CIVIC RESPONSIBILITY
Continued on page 5
Anambra State Governor, Prof Chukwuma Soludo, casting his vote at his Polling Unit 002, Umuezeadigo, Isuofia…yesterday
Governorship candidate of All Progressives Congress, Nicholas Ukachukwu, casting his vote at his polling unit in Osumenyi Ward 2, Polling Unit 012, Nnewi South Local Government Area…yesterday
Access Holdings, Four Other Tier-1 Banks’ Interest Income Jumps
Kayode Tokede
Nigeria's leading Tier-1 banks rode on the back of a steep interest rate environment to post a combined N11.15 trillion in interest income in the third quarter of 2025, representing a robust 27.3 per cent increase over the N8.76 trillion recorded in the corresponding period of 2024.
Some of the five financial powerhouses: Access Holdings Plc, Zenith Bank Plc, Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc
(GTCO), and United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA), reported double-digit growth in earnings from loans, advances, and investments, buoyed by the Central Bank of Nigeria's (CBN) sustained monetary tightening.
The apex bank kept the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) at a record 27.5 per cent through most of the quarter before trimming it slightly to 27 per cent in late September. According to data compiled by THISDAY, Access Holdings led the chart with N2.9 trillion
in interest income, up 21.1 per cent from N2.4 trillion in Q3 2024.
Zenith Bank followed closely with N2.74 trillion, reflecting a 41 per cent surge from N1.95 trillion a year earlier. UBA and GTCO recorded N1.98 trillion and N1.23 trillion, respectively, translating to 10.08 per cent and 26 per cent growth over the same period in 2024.
Market analysts attribute the earnings boost essentially to the CBN's hawkish stance, which has pushed up lending
27% in Q3 to N11.15tn
rates and returns on fixedincome instruments. In a note to THISDAY, investment banker and stockbroker Tajudeen Olayinka said the elevated interest rate environment reflects the central bank's deliberate strategy to attract foreign portfolio inflows, shore up external reserves, and stabilise the naira.
"The continued repricing of securities across markets has lifted yields on loans and advances," he noted, adding that "a high-interest regime
ANAMBRA GOVERNORSHIP ELECTION: SOLUDO LEADS
the commission's performance compared to previous elections in the state.
However, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 general election and former governor of the state, Mr. Peter Obi; Governor Soludo; the governorship candidate of the APC in the election, Mr. Nicholas Ukachukwu; the governorship candidate of the LP, Dr. George Moghalu, and the Senator representing Anambra Central zone, Victor Umeh, all raised concerns over alleged vote-buying and low voter turnout across the state.
But the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Queen Elizabeth Agwu, has dismissed claims of votebuying, and asked those making the claims to present credible evidence.
Obi and Moghalu lost their polling units to the APC and APGA, respectively.
Meanwhile, the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs,
November Holy Ghost Service of the church, themed “The Eve of Glory,” Pastor Adeboye stressed the sanctity of every human life and advised the federal government to give security chiefs a 90-day ultimatum to eliminate terrorist groups or face dismissal decisively.
The revered cleric noted that he had given similar counsel to the administration of the late President Muhammadu Buhari, but added that despite the initial progress, the efforts were not sustained to achieve lasting peace.
committee on the creation and management of the Nigeria Green Climate Fund and Sovereign Carbon Credits.
Komolafe spoke at the Global Sustainable Education and Leadership (G-SEL) Conference 2025, held at the House of Lords, Palace of Westminster, United Kingdom, where he was honoured with the Global Sustainable Leadership Award.
While the commission's revenue performance was N3.78 trillion in 2022, it rose
Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, has adjudged the election as peaceful and hitch-free.
As of last night, Soludo was leading in results from at least 15 local government areas (LGAs) uploaded by INEC on the IReV portal, while the APC candidate, Kachukwu, was leading only in his LGA, Nnewi South.
The 15 LGAs include: Awka South, Nnewi North, Dunukofia, Anambra East, Anambra West, Anaocha, Onitsha North, Onitsha South, Orumba South, Ihiala, Njikoka, Aguata, Ekwusigo, Oyi and Idemili South.
INEC had uploaded 99.39 per cent of the results of the 21 LGAs in the state as of last night.
However, the commission was yet to commence collation of results as at press time.
Obi, who voted at polling unit 019, Umudim Akasi, Agulu Ward 2, in Anaocha LGA, told
Adeboye stressed that service chiefs must eliminate not only terrorists but also their sponsors, regardless of influence.
He warned that failure to act decisively would worsen the crisis and put the nation at risk of foreign military involvement, adding that “We cannot delay. Action must follow words immediately.”
Adeboye appealed to the service chiefs to know that “This is a test of leadership and that terrorism and its sponsors will not be tolerated. They must act now,” he said.
to N4.34 trillion in 2023 and N12.25 trillion last year.
According to a statement issued yesterday by the Head of Media and Strategic Communication at NUPRC, Mr. Eniola Akinkuotu, the two-day event drew senior policymakers, business leaders, and diplomats from across the world.
The event recognised Komolafe's 'exceptional leadership' in steering reforms under the Petroleum Industry
journalists that he had received reports that some parties were paying between N20,000 and N30,000 per vote.
He lamented Nigeria’s deteriorating democracy.
The former governor said, “Our democracy is deteriorating, and unfortunately, those who are benefiting from bad governance seem to be fueling it.
“I have been able to listen and move around to see what is happening, and it is bad that we still experience vote buying. Someone who is not employed collects N30,000 for his vote; that means you have sold your school, your hospital, your job opportunities and are selling away your future. That is what is very worrisome about our democracy.”
Obi, who identified himself as a member of the LP, expressed support for the party’s candidate, Moghalu.
In some polling units around Awka South LGA visited by
He further urged the government to identify and expose the sponsors of terrorism and insurgency across the country.
Adeboye also appealed to President Tinubu to engage diplomatically with the US President to secure a 100day grace period before any international action is taken against Nigeria, saying this window should be used to eradicate terrorism once and for all.
Adeboye said that should America decide to hit Nigeria as threatened by Trump,
Act (PIA) and positioning Nigeria as a credible, transparent, and competitive energy investment destination.
"Since assuming office, he has been instrumental in deepening Nigeria's upstream regulatory transformation.
Under his watch, the country's active rig count surged from just eight in 2021 to over 40, while the total rig count stands at 69 as of October 2025.
"Revenue performance has also consistently exceeded
will remain with us until the CBN meets its exchange rate and inflation objectives."
However, Olayinka cautioned that the policy could have fiscal and inflationary side effects.
"Its sustainability will guide the CBN's next moves," he said.
"The government's rising debt service burden and its ripple effect on inflationary pressure are signs that the current rate strategy may not be sustainable in the long run."
Financial analysts expect
THISDAY, each vote was sold for between N5,000 and N10,000.
Speaking on the widespread vote-buying, Governor Soludo, who voted at his Ofiyi Square polling unit 002, Isuofia, in Aguata LGA, declared that he was sure of victory even if his opponents paid N100,000 per vote.
"We have also received reports about Nnewi South Local Government Area, where someone was sharing N15,000 for each vote; maybe because he is desperate to win in that local government.
"I heard it and I said, ‘don't mind’. Even if they share N100,000, let the people vote and let the votes count. We are fairly convinced that based on one man one vote, we are going to win by a landslide; there is no question about that," the governor said.
Similarly, Ukachukwu, who cast his vote at Polling Unit 012, Umudimala Amaihe Hall,
neither Russia nor China could come to the country’s aid.
“This is not the time for apportioning blame. Our president inherited this problem,” he said.
According to him, “No one is above the law. Sponsors must be held accountable”.
In response to President Trump's threat, the General Overseer said Nigeria cannot rely on foreign powers for protection.
“If the United States intervenes militarily, countries like China, Russia, or Britain will not come to Nigeria’s
government targets, with the commission achieving surpluses of 18.3 per cent in 2022, 14.6 per cent in 2023, and an impressive 84.2 per cent in 2024,' the NUPRC statement explained.
Beyond fiscal success, the NUPRC said it had recorded major milestones in host community development and indigenous participation.
The Host Community Development Trust (HCDT), it reiterated, has risen to over N350 billion, part of which has
the central bank to tread cautiously in the coming quarters, as Fitch Ratings recently projected continued monetary tightening to curb inflation and stabilise real interest rates, which remain negative. Yet, as Fitch warned, "Without further sizable tightening, macroeconomic stability may prove elusive."
For now, Nigeria's Tier-1 banks appear to be the biggest winners in a policy environment where high rates have turned credit and investments into gold.
Osumenyi, in Nnewi South LGA, also raised the alarm over alleged widespread vote-buying in the state.
He said reports from various parts of the state indicated cases of electoral malpractice, particularly vote-buying, which he described as a significant threat to Nigeria’s democracy.
“From what I have been hearing, there have been reports of hitches and security challenges, but largely, there has been vote buying,” Ukachukwu said.
“That has become the biggest menace that will witch-hunt this country to a standstill. It will reach a point where leaders who get into power through such means will not be able to deliver.”
He urged security agencies to intensify surveillance and take decisive action against anyone involved in electoral fraud or vote trading.
The LP governorship candidate, Moghalu, who spoke to journalists shortly
rescue. People are dying. Innocent lives are being lost.
Leaders must act swiftly, wisely, and decisively.”
“In my usual quiet way, I have related with all the presidents who were around when this trouble started. Whatever I discussed with them privately, I did my best to follow up behind the scenes. But you can only advise the Commanderin-Chief — you can’t command him,” Adeboye said.
“If I were asked to make suggestions, I would say to our government: ‘Move fast, move diplomatically, move wisely.
been used in implementing lofty projects and has contributed to the restoration of peace in hitherto volatile communities.
In his acceptance speech, Komolafe dedicated the award to the Nigerian people, describing it as a reflection of their resilience and the government's commitment to reform.
"This award belongs to Nigeria. It recognises the courage and faith that drive
after casting his vote at Uruagu Ward 1, Nnewi LGA, also lamented the reported cases of vote buying, adding that the widespread voter apathy reflected the public’s declining trust in the electoral process. He warned that monetising the voting process eroded fairness and encouraged political corruption.
“I can’t say it’s free and fair because if you monetise a process, you weaponise poverty. What’s free about it?” he queried.
On his part, the Senator representing Anambra Central, Senator Victor Umeh, called for the arrest of those buying votes, saying they are enemies of the state.
In a tweet, the African Action Congress (AAC) governorship candidate, Chioma Ifemeludike, accused political parties of widespread vote-buying and described it as a destructive practice that criminalises both voters and politicians.
Please find a way to convince the President of America to delay his actions for about 100 days. Then come home and tell our security chiefs to get rid of these terrorists within 90 days or resign.’
“There was a president — unfortunately, he’s dead now — Buhari, who issued such an order. He is not here to tell you who gave him that advice. He acted on it but didn’t follow through. Three months passed, and the work was not done. I asked him why he didn’t proceed, but I won’t tell you the details.
our reforms in the upstream oil and gas sector. We are building a transparent, accountable, and investment-friendly system that reflects our national values and global aspirations," he said. Komolafe noted that the NUPRC's strategy is anchored on three priorities — transparency, competitiveness, and sustainability — with an emphasis on maximising the value of Nigeria's hydrocarbon resources while advancing the energy transition.
60 HEARTY CHEERS…
Bad Leadership Responsible for Nigeria’s Insecurity, Says Tinubu’s Former Special Adviser, Baba-Ahmed
Ex-SGF, Mustapha, demands diplomatic engagement with other nations, collective effort to tackle insecurity
Chuks Okocha in Abuja and Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt
Former Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, has blamed successive Nigerian governments for the country's insecurity, saying poor leadership over the last decade is mainly responsible for the current state of insecurity.
This is as former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr. Boss Mustapha, has urged Nigeria to deploy all its diplomatic resources to engage with other nations to tackle insecurity in the country.
Speaking on ARISE NEWS Channel at the weekend, BabaAhmed said, “The situation is more dire; the challenges are more serious; the threats are more varied; the sources of these threats are more varied.”
He added, “The only thing that has been consistent all along is that we have had bad leaders going as far back as perhaps after President Yar’Adua. All the way, all through the last 10, the last 15 years, this country has been poorly led. Everything that happens to this country, you can visit it on the doorstep of our leadership. This is a great country, with great people, which bad, indifferent leaders have poorly served.”
Baba-Ahmed also assessed the performance of current and previous administrations on security, stating, “We are where we are today because our leaders have failed us.
President Tinubu has failed us. The president before him, for eight years, had done virtually nothing about the growing insecurity in our lives. The president before him hasn’t done much either. And here we are.”
Kano APC in War of Words over Senate’s Non-confirmation of NERC’s Chairmanship Nominee, Ramat
Ahmad Sorondinki in Kano
Supporters of the Deputy Senate President, Senator Barau Jibrin, and those of the gubernatorial and deputy gubernatorial candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kano State, Dr. Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna and Hon. Murtala Sule Garo, respectively, in the 2023 general election, engaged in a war of words at the weekend over the non-confirmation of Abdullahi Garba Ramat as the Executive Chairman of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).
While Jibrin is said to be eyeing the APC governorship ticket in 2027, Gawuna is also planning to recontest the
party’s gubernatorial ticket after losing to Governor Abba Yusuf of the NNPP in the 2023 governorship poll.
In an open letter, a political group within the Kano APC alleged that Senator Jibrin worked behind the scenes to frustrate Ramat’s confirmation.
The letter, addressed to Jibrin, was signed by the forum’s chairman, Dr. Muhammad Ali Al-Hassan, and Secretary, Yusuf Abdullahi.
In the letter, the group expressed concern over what it described as “credible reports” indicating that the lawmaker has been lobbying the members of the National Assembly and the Presidency to derail Ramat’s nomination.
He further addressed international perceptions, particularly from the United States, noting that Nigeria’s security situation has become increasingly complex over the years.
“If you go back to 2009, when the first uprising of Boko Haram occurred, to where we are today, the mutation of some of these problems, and also the addition of new challenges, has changed the face of this conflict entirely. We’re not really talking about the same Nigeria. Nigeria today is dramatically different from Nigeria of even 10 years ago,” he said.
Baba-Ahmed also commented on recent US claims and Donald Trump’s threat of military intervention.
“America would not fix Nigeria. That is the last thing we need — an America breathing down our neck and making Nigeria weak because we can buckle under. And that is not good for this country.
“The intelligence and the statistics are grounds for this action. It does not indicate that you’re dealing with a well-informed leadership that recognises the fact that they are dealing with a very complex country.”
The former presidential aide also spoke about Nigeria’s strategic importance, adding, “Nigeria holds a huge strategic position in the geopolitics, in the Sahel, in West Africa, in Africa.
“It’s not the kind of country where you have a president who is used to getting his way, who says, ‘Okay, now give me Nigeria, bring Nigeria to the table, I’ll deal with it the way I want to.’ And the language of the Americans is not very encouraging.”
Baba-Ahmed’s remarks come amid comments by US President Trump, who,
in a video posted by the White House, alleged that “thousands and thousands” of Christians were being killed in Nigeria by what he called “radical Islamists,” describing the situation as an “existential threat to Christianity.” The Federal Government of Nigeria, however, rejected the allegation, describing it as false and misleading, and highlighted its ongoing fight against insecurity under President Bola Tinubu, stressing that efforts were ongoing to strengthen interfaith dialogue and community reconciliation in areas affected by violence.
Trump Says No US Official will Attend G20 in South Africa, Cites Human Rights Abuses
United States President, Donald Trump, has said no American official will attend the G20 summit in South Africa later this month, citing “human rights abuses” taking place in the former apartheid country.
The G20 meeting is scheduled to be held in Johannesburg from November 22 to 23.
Trump had earlier said
South Africa should not be in the G20 at all and hinted that he would send Vice-President JD Vance instead of attending himself.
However, the US president’s latest announcement rules out the possibility of JD Vance’s attendance.
Trump said it is “a total disgrace” that the G20 will be held in South Africa, noting that he looks forward
to hosting the next meeting in Miami, Florida.
“Afrikaners (people who are descended from Dutch settlers and also French and German immigrants) are being killed and slaughtered, and their land and farms are being illegally confiscated,” he said.
“No U.S. Government Official will attend as long as these Human Rights abuses continue. I look forward to
hosting the 2026 G20 in Miami, Florida!”
Since returning to office in January, Trump has repeatedly accused South Africa of discriminating against the white minority and perpetuating a “genocide” against the Afrikaners.
In May, he confronted South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in the Oval Office over the claims.
Sheriff Denies Accusing Shettima of Creating Boko Haram, Reaffirms His Commitment to National Stability
Former Governor of Borno State, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, has dismissed as false a viral report claiming he accused Vice President Kashim Shettima of creating Boko Haram.
A statement issued by the Sheriff's media office described the publication titled “It’s Not Me, It’s Shettima Who Created Boko Haram – Sheriff Reveals” as entirely fabricated and
intended to mislead the public and tarnish his reputation.
Sheriff clarified that he never granted any interview or made comments relating to the claims circulating online.
“The story is a total falsehood, devoid of truth, and a deliberate attempt to sow discord within the nation’s political landscape.
“At no time did Senator Sheriff engage with any
journalist on this matter,” the statement said.
The former governor described the publication as a “dangerous piece of fake news” aimed at undermining his contributions to peace, unity, and development in Borno State and Nigeria.
He reaffirmed his commitment to national stability and condemned those spreading misinformation for political gain.
Sheriff also directed his legal team to take immediate steps to identify and prosecute the individuals behind the false report.
“Should the publication not be retracted, the Senator will seek full legal redress,” the statement warned. He further urged the public and media to disregard the viral story, emphasising his dedication to truth, justice, and accountability.
L-R: Former Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi; the celebrant, Dr. Reuben Abati; and his wife, Kikelomo Abati, during Dr. Abati's 60th birthday reception at the Eko Hotel and Suites, Lagos...yesterday
KUNLE OGUNFUYI
LAUNCHING NEWS PLATFORM…
In Brazil, Shettima Restates Nigeria’s Commitment to Lead the Way in Seeking Solutions to Climate Change
Deji Elumoye in Abuja
Vice President Kashim Shettima has reiterated Nigeria’s determination to continue to use its influence to lead the way in seeking solutions to climate change matters in Africa and beyond.
Shettima made Nigeria’s position known during the 30th Session of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 30) convened by Brazil’s President, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, in collaboration with the United Nations and other global partners, in the city of
Belém, capital of the state of Pará, in the Brazilian Amazon. Shettima, according to a statement issued yesterday his Media Assistant, Stanley Nkwocha, joined other world leaders, development partners and business executives at the Leaders’ Climate Summit –COP30, where he delivered a speech on Nigeria's effort in addressing climate change.
The Vice President who departed Belem, Brazil, for Abuja yesterday evening, stated that the nation’s renewed climate agenda represents “not just an aspiration, but
a solemn national commitment to preserve the planet for future generations.”
Shettima also represented President Bola Tinubu at a high-level thematic session titled, “Climate and Nature: Forests and Oceans,” on the margins of COP 30, where he delivered Nigeria's bold statement.
Delivering the statement titled, "The Rational Soul of Nature," he called on global partners "to recognise the economic value of nature and to channel significant finance towards protecting and
restoring it through predictable, equitable, and accessible funding mechanisms."
The vice president also took part in the launch of the Tropical Forest Forever Fund, and participated in a roundtable chaired by President Lula on Climate and Nature, as well as an Amazonian Cocktail for Heads of Delegation, hosted by the President of Brazil.
On the sidelines, Shettima also held bilateral meetings focused on establishing and managing Nigeria's participation in the carbon
Even in Retirement, My Commitment to Nigeria’s Peace, Progress Remains Unshaken, Says Ex-CDS Musa
Linus Eleke in Abuja
Former Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa (rtd.), has pledged to continue contributing to Nigeria’s peace, unity, and development even after leaving active service.
Musa pledged at a grand reception organised in his honour by members of the
United
38 Regular Course of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) on Friday night in Abuja.
The former defence chief, who retired recently after decades of service, said retirement had not diminished his sense of duty to the nation, stressing that accurate service to Nigeria goes beyond holding office.
“Even in retirement, my commitment to Nigeria remains unshaken.
“I will continue to support our armed forces and contribute to peace and national progress in any way I can,” he said.
Musa reflected on his years in uniform, describing them as a period of sacrifice, teamwork, and shared victories.
He paid glowing tributes to serving and fallen troops for their dedication and courage in defending the country.
“Leadership is not about titles or ranks; it is about service, compassion and integrity.
“I remain proud of our troops who continue to stand firm in the face of challenges,” he added.
Nigeria Airlines Names Inaugural Aircraft to Ghana after former President Jerry Rawlings
Chinedu Eze
United Nigeria Airlines (UNA) has announced the commencement of direct commercial flights on the Lagos–Accra and Abuja–Accra routes, and unveiled an aircraft named after the late Ghanaian President, Jerry John Rawlings, in recognition of his PanAfrican ideals and influence on regional integration.
According to a statement from the airline, its chairman, Prof. Obiora Okonkwo, who
led a mock departure and arrival inspection exercise at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, yesterday, said the new routes signal UNA’s transition from a domestic operator into a stronger West African player.
He confirmed that members of the Rawlings family would attend the formal unveiling ceremony in Accra. Okonkwo disclosed that UNA is expanding its fleet by six aircraft over the next few months, a move he said
will deepen aviation access within ECOWAS, boost people-to-people exchange, support trade flows, and provide Nigerian travellers with homegrown options instead of relying almost exclusively on foreign carriers that currently dominate regional routes.
However, he expressed concern over Nigeria’s heavy aviation tax structure, describing the country as “one of the most over-taxed aviation jurisdictions in Africa”.
He disclosed that while
Ghana’s passenger service charge at international terminals is $60, Nigeria’s is $100.
On a Lagos–Accra return ticket, he said, taxes alone can exceed $116 before other surcharges, creating high fares that passengers regularly complain about.
Okonkwo estimated that more than 200,000 passengers fly the Lagos–Accra corridor yearly, noting that even before UNA’s maiden flight, market response was already visible.
markets, enabling the nation to unlock between $2.5 billion and $3 billion annually in carbon finance over the next decade to help meet climate goals.
Special Adviser to the President on NEC and Climate Change, Rukaiya El-Rufai, in an interview with journalists, gave a recap of the Vice President's participation in COP 30.
According to her, Nigeria will use its influence to mobilize finance for the country, as well as advocate adaptation finance for African nations in order to collectively tackle the challenges of climate change.
“One thing that I know the whole world would look out for is Nigeria’s leadership in Africa. So, we do have our influence in the regional ECOWAS and also at AU platforms to demonstrate that we are that big brother. "So, we must galvanise all stakeholders, both in public and private sectors, to make sure we implement our National Determined Contributions (NDCs) and make it work for us,” she said.
The presidential aide added that Nigeria's natural resources will also play a key role in mitigating the effects of climate change.
CAN Youths Back Trump’s Planned Military Intervention in Nigeria, Demand Tough Action against Terrorists from Tinubu
Alex Enumah in
Abuja
The Youth Wing of the Christian Association of Nigeria yesterday threw its weight behind United States President Donald Trump’s claim that Christians are being systematically targeted and killed in Nigeria.
Speaking during the National Youth Fellowship Convention held in Abuja, the National Secretary of YOWICAN, Elijah Bako, also welcomed his proposed intervention, saying it is a timely “wake-up call” to authorities rather than an assault on national sovereignty.
In attendance were zonal and state youth leaders of CAN from Plateau, Nasarawa, Benue, and the North-East.
Trump had on his Truth Social platform warned that the United States might go “guns-a-blazing” if the alleged killings continued.
In his address, Bako lamented the wave of
killings, kidnappings, the razing of churches, and forced displacement of Christian communities in parts of the North and Middle Belt, which had reached what he called a “breaking point.”
Quoting the 1999 Constitution, Bako reminded political leaders that “the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government,” insisting that the reality on the ground suggests the opposite.
“Killings, kidnappings, and destruction of communities have become daily occurrences while those responsible walk freely.
“Despite overwhelming evidence of targeted attacks against Christian communities, the government action remains weak or nonexistent,” he said. Bako said Trump’s remarks on terrorism and genocide in Nigeria should push Nigerian leaders to introspect, not react defensively.
L–R: President, Media Centre for Safety Reporting, Mr. John Enyinnaya Thompson; Chief Liaison Officer to the Abia State Government, Adaeze Okonkwo; Publisher, Ovation, Dele Momodu; Founder, Baywood Group, Mr. Chris Baywood Ibe; former Minister for Trade, Industry and Investment, Niyi Adebayo; and former Director General, NIMASA, Dr. Dakuku Peterside, during the official launch of the CBI New App, in Lagos…weekend ETOP UKUTT
PROMOTING BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT…
L-R: Group Managing Director/ Editor-in-Chief of
Five Years after COVID-19, Nigeria Still Unprepared for Health Crisis, Says Report
Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja
A new report by SBM Intelligence has revealed that Nigeria’s health system remains critically fragile five years after the COVID-19 pandemic, with no state scoring even 30 per cent preparedness.
The report, titled “The SBM Health Preparedness Index 2025”, released last week by the geopolitical and socio-economic research firm, according to Premium Times, assessed the capacity of all 36 states to respond to health emergencies.
It found that Abia State ranked highest with 26.85 points, while Katsina (12.54), Kebbi (13.31), and Ebonyi
(12.85) were among the lowestperforming states.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Nigeria, like most African countries, struggled to contain infections and manage logistics due to inadequate testing capacity, limited hospital infrastructure, and a shortage of critical health workers and supplies.
The new report shows that those same systemic weaknesses persist today.
The report highlights an overstretched healthcare workforce, with an average of 15,361 patients per doctor nationwide, far below the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) benchmark of one doctor per
NERD: FG Records 10,000 Digitised Thesis Submissions in Three Weeks
Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja
Reports from the newly established national education record digitisation programme under the auspices of the Nigeria Education Repository and Databank (NERD) have shown that Nigerian students uploaded and curated over 10,000 project entries in the first three weeks of the programme. However, the figure climbed to over 11,000 submissions by this weekend, with 158 postgraduate entries from a total of 242 active institutions, while over 40,000 students have been successfully enrolled into the NERD system, a statement from the organisation said.
The NERD programme, unveiled to Nigerians by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, has also onboarded 135 tertiary institutions for academic credential verification purposes, it added.
From the live information analytics available on the
NERD portal, Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti led with a total of 990 curated entries, followed by Bayero University Kano, with a total submission of 611 as of press time.
Auchi Polytechnic, Edo State, ranked third on the list of highest early enrolment figures with a total student project entry of 532. They were followed closely by Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma Edo State (493), Osun State Polytechnic Iree, Osun State (479), the University of Ilorin Kwara State (469) and the Bamidele Olumilua University of Education, Science and Technology Ikere Ekiti (462).
Others were: Kaduna Polytechnic (379), the University of Benin, Edo State (374) and the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Enugu State, with 282 entries to make the list of 10 highest student submissions at the end of the first one month of the programme.
1,000 people.
In comparison, Enugu, Edo, and Lagos have fewer than 3,200 patients per doctor, while northern states such as Bauchi and Zamfara have more than 43,000.
The report links this imbalance to the ongoing “Japa Syndrome”, which has seen thousands of Nigerian health professionals migrate abroad
in search of better pay and working conditions.
It warns that the resulting workforce shortage is fuelling longer hospital queues, overworked doctors, and rising preventable deaths, particularly in rural areas.
According to the report, budget performance remains inconsistent across states.
While Lagos leads nominally,
allocating N221 billion to health, Bauchi, Kaduna, and Kano states each dedicate more than 15 per cent of their total state budgets to the sector, among the highest in the country.
Conversely, Akwa Ibom (4.3 per cent) and Imo (3.5 per cent) rank among the lowest, highlighting what the report describes as weak political
commitment to public health. Measured per capita, Abia (N22,926) and Ogun (N21,051) stand out as the top spenders, while Adamawa and Imo states allocate less than N4,500 per resident. The report noted that political will, rather than resources, often determines health outcomes across Nigerian states.
First Human Trial Shows Promising Results for Single-dose Lassa Fever Vaccine
The International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI), a non-profit scientific research organisation, has reported that its first human trial of a single-dose Lassa fever vaccine is safe, induces durable immunity, and supports Phase 2 trials in West Africa.
The single dose elicited robust and long-lasting immune responses while demonstrating an acceptable safety profile, according to findings published Thursday in the New England Journal of Medicine.
The News Agency of
Nigeria (NAN) reported that the Phase 1 trial enrolled 114 healthy volunteers in the US and Liberia, testing the rVSV∆G-LASV-GPC vaccine at multiple dose levels.
Volunteers were monitored for 12 months post-vaccination, with immune responses activating both humoral and cellular immunity across all doses.
Findings show that the antibodies produced were cross-reactive with multiple Lassa virus lineages circulating in West Africa, suggesting the potential for broad protection.
Swati Gupta, IAVI’s Vice President of Emerging Infectious Diseases and Epidemiology, said no vaccine-related serious adverse events were reported, and importantly, no cases of hearing loss – a known risk of Lassa infection – were observed.
Gupta noted that Lassa fever, an acute viral haemorrhagic illness endemic to West Africa, kills thousands of people annually.
He added that there are currently no licensed vaccines or treatments, making the
development of effective vaccines a high priority.
“The trial, funded by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), builds on strong preclinical results and paves the way for an ongoing Phase 2 trial in West Africa,” he said.
CEPI’s Executive Director of Vaccine R&D, Kent Kester, said the trial results “take us one step closer towards a much-needed Lassa fever vaccine, which could save thousands of lives and avert millions of dollars in societal costs.”
Djibouti President Announces Interest to Run for Sixth Term
Djibouti’s President, Ismail Omar Guelleh, will run for a sixth term in next year’s election, political sources told AFP, after parliament removed a constitutional barrier that had prevented him from running again.
Guelleh has been in power since 1999.
The tiny Horn of Africa nation is a stable state in an often-troubled region, operating a major port that hosts military bases for the United States, France, China, Japan and Italy.
“He has agreed to be a
candidate in next year’s presidential election, and everything went smoothly,” President of the National Assembly, Dileita Mohamed Dileita, told AFP, after a congress of the ruling People’s Rally for Progress (RPP).
The 77-year-old’s sixth-term ambition was confirmed to AFP by another congress participant, who requested anonymity, but has not been officially announced by the presidency.
Guelleh is the latest ageing African leader — such as 92-year-old Paul Biya in
Cameroon, and 83-year-old Alassane Ouattara in the Ivory Coast — to seek to remain in power.
His re-election is virtually guaranteed.
He won the 2021 election with 97 per cent of the vote, while his coalition, the Union for the Presidential Majority, holds a majority of parliamentary seats.
The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) characterised the elections as “not free”.
The move comes less than a week after Parliament voted to
remove the 75-year age limit for presidential candidates from the Constitution.
In 2010, the Constitution was amended to remove the two-term limit.
Human rights organisations regularly criticise Djibouti for its repression of dissenting voices.
It ranks 168th out of 180 in Reporters Without Borders’ (RSF) 2025 World Press Freedom Index, with the NGO saying “the media landscape is completely controlled and limited almost exclusively to state media”.
Champion Newspaper Ltd., Mrs. Nwadiuto Ihekanwa; Director, Nepal Oil and Gas Limited, Ngozi Ekeoma; Chairman, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria South-east Zone and Chairman Keystone Bank, Ada Chukwudozie; and Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Doris Uzor Anite, at the groundbreaking of Government -Private Sector finance and SMEs growth with South-east business leaders and Lagos State officials in Ikeja, Lagos…recently
FOR IMPROVED ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE...
Akpabio, Oborevwori, Ooni of Ife, Others Celebrate Abati at 60 as Obaigbena Honours Veteran Journalist
Yinka Olatunbosun and Sunday Ehigiator in Lagos and Sunday Aborisade in Abuja
President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio; Governor of Delta State, Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori; the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, and other political and media icons have felicitated
with veteran journalist and ARISE News anchor and analyst, Dr. Reuben Abati, on the occasion of his 60th birthday anniversary.
It was an evening of elegance and laughter as the Ooni of Ife, alongside several leading figures in Nigeria’s media and political circles, gathered at an exclusive dinner event, organised by the Chairman of THISDAY/
ARISE Media Group, Prince Nduka Obaigbena, to celebrate a veteran journalist and broadcaster.
The event, held hours after the public presentation of Abati’s three new books: ‘Portraits: People, Politics and Society’, ‘A Love Letter and Other Stories’ and ‘How Goodluck Jonathan Became President’, featured live music
by the Mike Adenuga Band. Guests enjoyed a relaxed evening filled with shared memories, laughter, and music from Abati’s youthful years.
In his remarks, Obaigbena praised Abati’s contributions to journalism and public life.
According to him, “Tonight is a family affair; we’re among colleagues, editors, journalists, and friends who
Army Renews Commitment to Protect Facilities of Multinational Oil Companies Operating in Niger Delta
Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt
The 6 Division of the Nigerian Army, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, has restated its commitment to protecting the officials and facilities of multinational oil companies operating in the Niger Delta region.
The General Officer Commanding (GOC) 6 Division, Major General Emmanuel Emekah, made the commitment at the inauguration of three new hospital wards built by TotalEnergies (E&P) Nigeria
Limited in partnership with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) at the 6 Division Nigeria Army Medical Centre in Port Harcourt.
Emekah acknowledged the relationship between the company and the Army, which he said has contributed significantly to peace, stability, and development within their area of responsibility.
He also appreciated TotalEnergies for the gesture, saying it reflects the company's corporate social responsibility values, stressing that the facility
symbolises hope for the soldiers and their families.
"I wish to categorically assure you that 6 Division Headquarters will take every necessary step to sustain and deepen this relationship. We will continue to provide unrelenting security support to safeguard your operations, facilities, and personnel.
"6 Division remains fully committed to promoting a safe and secure environment for all strategic partners in the Niger Delta region," he said.
While charging medical personnel of the command
to maximise the new facility, he stated that it would enhance soldiers' performance.
"The facility is a symbol of hope, care, and compassion for our officers, soldiers, and their families. The facility will enhance our capacity to deliver quality medical care to personnel and dependents," Emekah added.
The Managing Director/ Country Chair of TotalEnergies, Mr. Matthieu Bouyer, while inaugurating the hospital block, restated the company's commitment to the welfare of the Nigerian Army.
Rivers Assembly Investigates Renaissance Energy's Alleged Neglect of Oil Spills in Rivers Community
Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt
Rivers State House of Assembly has ordered an investigation into the allegations that an oil firm, Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited, neglected oil spills that devastated the B-Dere community in Gokana Local Government Area (LGA) of the state.
This followed a petition written against the firm by the community through their Estate Surveyors and Valuers, Hamilton Odom & Co.
The petition was signed by Hamilton Odom and presented on the floor of the House by the Deputy Speaker.
The Speaker, Hon. Martin Amaewhule, referred the petition to the House Committee on Public Complaints and Petitions, Chaired by Dr. Enemi Alabo George.
The community, in the petition, recalled that on May 7, 2025, an oil spill occurred along the 24 Ogale-Bomu Pipeline, which crisscrosses their area.
The petitioners explained that a report by joint team officials from the Rivers State Ministry of Environment and the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), including representatives from the impacted community, established that the cause of the leak was equipment failure.
They said: "The spill had a devastating impact on the vegetation health, leading to stress, defoliation and death.
The toxic hydrocarbons in the oil also penetrated
plant tissues, disrupting physiological functions and impairing water and nutrient intake. This resulted in stunted growth, plant mortality and hindered regeneration, particularly affecting young plants and seedlings.
"The spill also contaminated underground water and disrupted economic activities such as farming, leading to loss of income and livelihoods, and causing psychological trauma and stress that can have long-term effects on mental health and well-being of the people".
have journeyed together over the years. Reuben is not just a colleague; he’s part of our story.
From his time at The Guardian to his service in government and now on ARISE TV, he has maintained the highest standards of professionalism.”
In his remarks, His Imperial Majesty, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, who attended as a special guest, lauded Abati’s humility, intellect, and enduring legacy in Nigerian journalism.
“Dr Reuben Abati is not just a journalist; he is a son of the soil and a man of wisdom,” the monarch said. “Watching him on ARISE TV is always a delight; his composure and brilliance set him out.”
The Ooni also reflected on the cultural significance of Abati’s name, linking it to Yoruba ancestry.
“The name Abati has deep Yoruba roots. It is derived from one of the names we call God
and symbolises something eternal; something that cannot be forgotten. You carry that meaning proudly, and it shows in your life and career.”
Similarly, former Ogun State Governor and veteran journalist, Chief Olusegun Osoba, described Abati as one of Nigeria’s finest media minds, whose work continues to strengthen democracy and public accountability.
“Reuben represents the best of our profession: Intellect, courage, and balance. He has done the media proud, not just through his writings and broadcasts, but through his mentorship and dedication to truth.”
Also speaking, the Chairman of the Editorial Board of Leadership Newspaper, Azubuike Ishiekwene, acknowledged Abati’s influence across generations of journalists.
Police Inspector Arrested for Brutalising His Children over Allegations of Witchcraft in Bayelsa
Linus Aleke in Abuja
The Commissioner of Police in Bayelsa State, Mr Francis Idu, has confirmed the arrest of a police inspector, identified as Sunday Idey, by operatives of the police special unit, Operation Doo Akpor, in the state, for allegedly brutalising his three children over allegations of witchcraft.
The inspector, who is attached to the Anti-Cultism unit of the Igbogene police unit, reportedly assaulted his children at the weekend over allegations of being members of a witchcraft group.
Idu said the officer had been arrested and that an investigation into the matter was ongoing.
The incident has sparked outrage across Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital, as many residents
expressed shock over how the police officer allegedly turned against his own children.
According to eyewitnesses, concerned neighbours who noticed the assault quickly alerted operatives of the Operation Door Akpor, who rescued the brutalised children and took them to a hospital for treatment.
The incident has also drawn strong condemnation from gender rights advocates, including the Chairperson of International Federation of Women Lawyers, Bayelsa chapter, led by Dr. Boma Toney Miebai; the National Association of Women Against Gender Based Violence, led by Dr. Dise Ogbise Goddy Harry and the Chairperson of the Do Foundation, Bayelsa chapter, Dianna Iluma Pius.
L-R: Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Works, Funsho Adebiyi; Minister of State for Works, Bello Muhammad Goroyon; Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Biodun Oyebanji; Ekiti State Commissioner for Works, Mr. Adebunmi Adebayo; and Delta State Commissioner for Works (Highways and Urban Roads), Mr. Reuben Izeze, during the 30th National Council on Works held in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State…recently
When Mrs rita Abeke Owoyemi marked her 70th birthday recently, her husband, Otunba Funso, supported by their children and grandchildren rolled out the red carpet for a grand celebration. After a thanksgiving service at Holy Trinity Anglican Church, Surulere, Lagos, the celebrant and her husband’s friends, family members, associates and other guests were entertained at The Podium Event Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos pHOTOS: ETOP UKUTT
L-R: Celebrant’s husband, Otunba Funsho Owoyemi and the celebrant, Chief ( Mrs) Rita Owoyemi L-R: Hon. Justice Folasade Ojo, Chief Bayo Ojo (SAN) and Asiwaju Olusola Akanmode
L-R: Otunba Kayode Akinbola, Chief Kunle David, and General Benjamin Akinyomi
Mr. and Mrs. Akin Kemisola Opeodu
L-R: Prof. Tunde Olusunle ,and Managing Director of THISDAY Newspapers, Mr. Eniola Bello L-R: Chief and Chief (Mrs) Kola Jamodu; and Asiwaju Onafowokan
The celebrant cutting her birthday cake
L-R: Hon. Deinde Abolarin with Dr. and Mrs. Korede Adedayo
L-R: Rear Admiral Anthony Oni (rtd) and Mr. Tobi Oduyale
Mr. and Mrs. Charity Oranyeli
Husband of the celebrant, Otunba Funsho Owoyemi and the celebrant, Chief ( Mrs.) Rita Owoyemi with their children and grandchildren
L-R: Tunde Alogbo and Tunde Odunenu
Mr. and Mrs. Uwa Oby Ehanire
Engr and Mrs. Owa Adewale
Mr. and Mrs Iyiola Oyefefo
L-R: Mrs. Florence Omotehinwa and Hon. Justice Folasade Ojo
L-R: Patience Apollos and Bolanle Odunayo
L-R: Mrs. Nike Olopoenia and Capt Ade Olopoenia
L-R: Dr. Olumuyiwa Owoyemi, Otunba Babs Alatise, and Mrs. Genevieve Alatise
A former spokesman of the Nigerian Army, Brigadier General Sani Usman (rtd.), has said that one of the most challenging phases of Nigeria’s counter-insurgency operations was not only the physical combat in the Northeast but the fierce propaganda
war waged by Boko Haram to undermine public trust in government institutions.
Speaking in Abuja yesterday at an event marking the 35th anniversary of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) chapter of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, Usman said the military had to rethink its entire communication
Writer, Seun Awogbenle, Bags Master’s from UK Varsity
The Nigerian writer and columnist, Seun Awogbenle, has bagged a master’s degree from Bournemouth University in the United Kingdom.
Awogbenle completed a master’s programme in Economic Development and Emerging Markets from Bournemouth University, where he gained essential knowledge in contemporary and emerging global economic issues such as international economics, economic growth, global trade, energy transition, human capital, industrialisation and inclusive development.
The author said the programme provided him an opportunity to gain insight into the experience of functioning societies and how to adapt their key learnings for the transformation of Nigeria’s governance system.
Awogbenle said more than anything else, he saw firsthand why development must be inclusive, balanced and well-distributed.
“The ideas that have been canvassed on the programme would be valuable as we work to address some of Nigeria’s
most fundamental challenges, including poverty, inequality and unemployment, and how to harness our huge human capital potential as the foundation for future prosperity,” Awogbenle said.
Hinting at a potential future in politics, Awogbenle said the programme has solidified his continuing interest in public service leadership and that he looks forward to contributing his ideas to accelerate government impact and build a more prosperous country.
Awogbenle, a Nigerian writer, public policy professional and columnist, is the author of The Urgency of Now: Why Nigeria Needs a Vision of Prosperity, Protection and Liberty.
He is a columnist on THISDAY Newspaper and TheCable. Through his writings, he reiterates his belief in the power of policy and politics to transform lives and deliver public good. His writings have earned him acknowledgement from governors and other influential personalities.
strategy to stop the insurgents from shaping public perception at the peak of the conflict.
The former army imagemaker, however, admitted that the troops sometimes suffered heavy casualties in ambushes and surprise attacks across the North-east.
“We were in the middle of an information war that tested our credibility, speed, and strategic communication under pressure. Again, we fought two wars simultaneously.
“One was a physical war against insurgents on the ground and the other, an information war against their digital propaganda and global misinformation network,” he said.
According to him, the situation peaked around 2014 when Boko Haram’s threats carried more weight than official statements,
leaving Nigerians uncertain about whom to believe.
“In 2014, we had a situation where the average Nigerian did not even know whom to believe, whether the insurgents or the government.
“And this was because, sincerely speaking, when the insurgents threatened, they would do something; they always went ahead to do it. So, that was the situation I inherited,” he noted.
He recalled how the group used social media platforms, especially YouTube, to gain followers, instil fear and control the narrative.
At the time, he said, merely mentioning “Boko Haram” or its leader, Abubakar Shekau, openly could lead to being targeted.
“They were all over social media platforms, particularly
YouTube, where they exploited the internet and emerging technologies to shape narratives, build followers, whip up sentiments, and, in fact, instil fear in Nigerians,” he said.
Usman revealed that the military was forced to adopt a proactive communication doctrine, prioritising transparency and narrative ownership to maintain public trust.
“So, we developed a three-part doctrine. We broke the story first, and we are factual and, most importantly, forthright about it. But it came with great cost anyway,” he said.
The ex-military spokesman added that the experience showed that credibility remains the strongest asset in any crisis communication.
On his part, Chairman of the FCT NIPR chapter, Stanley
Ogadigo, said the institute was celebrating 35 years of “impactful living” and would continue to strengthen professional ethics among public relations practitioners.
Boko Haram, under Abubakar Shekau, gained international notoriety after the 2014 abduction of nearly 300 schoolgirls from Chibok. Shekau later reportedly killed himself in 2021 rather than surrender to the Islamic State West Africa Province, which has since become the dominant jihadist faction in the North-East.
The insurgency, now in its 15th year, has led to many military and civilian deaths, with over two million people displaced across the Lake Chad basin.
Rival jihadist factions also continue to clash for control of territory and influence.
to Alma Mater, Unveil Legacy Projects at South-west Symposium
Oluwaseyi Adedotun
The University of Ilorin Alumni Association, Southwest Zone, yesterday held a symposium at the Sheraton Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos, to mark the institution’s 50th anniversary and reaffirm its commitment to the university’s growth through several legacy projects.
According to organisers, the projects include a water dam, a 204-bed female hostel, improved transport facilities, and a solar farm.
Chairman of the event and
Managing Director of the Nigerian Railway Corporation, Dr Kayode Opeifa, praised the alumni for sustaining the university’s legacy and pledged continued support.
“Vice Chancellor, we will be your ambassadors. We’ll go out and make sure this alumni grows even stronger. The Lagos alumni should be the biggest and most vibrant,” he said.
He added, “The University of Ilorin made us tough, focused, and disciplined. Today, we must give back and ensure that future generations enjoy even better experiences.”
Vice Chancellor, Professor Wahab Egbewole (SAN), in his keynote address titled “Unilorin at 50: Own It and Leave a Legacy,” described the milestone as “50 years of excellence, resilience, and service to humanity.”
“The University of Ilorin has grown from modest beginnings into one of Nigeria’s leading universities, a citadel of learning renowned for academic excellence, moral discipline, and peace,” he said.
He urged alumni to identify
specific areas of impact within their faculties and departments.
“Yes, as a collective, but even as individuals that we are. We can also identify what legacy we want to leave behind,” he noted.
Delivering another address, Barrister Mutiu Agboke stressed that alumni associations must drive mentorship, integration, and national development.
“An alumni association is not just a social group,” he said. “It is a platform for integration, mentorship, voluntary service, and institutional support.”
Abuja Mega Lions Club to Renovate, Equip Abuja City Library
sunday Ehigiator
The Abuja Mega Lions Club, District 404A2 of Lions Club International, has announced plans to digitise, renovate, and enrich the Abuja City Library as part of its humanitarian projects for the 2025/2026 Lions year. This was disclosed by the newly installed 5th President of the club, Dr Charles Bassey,
during his investiture ceremony held recently in Abuja. A psychologist, banker, and resourcefulness coach, Dr Bassey pledged to steer the club toward impactful and legacy-driven projects that would distinguish it as one of the leading clubs within the district.
The investiture formed part of a triple celebration marking the club’s 5th anniversary, the induction of new officers, and a 50 million fundraising dinner
aimed at supporting humanitarian initiatives across the Federal Capital Territory.
According to Dr Bassey, a Melvin Jones Fellow, his administration’s guiding principle, “Service beyond Today,” reflects a desire to create projects that outlive the current leadership and continue to impact lives long into the future.
He explained that proceeds from the 50 million fundraiser will support several humanitarian projects,
with the digitisation and renovation of the Abuja City Library as one of the flagship initiatives. The project, he said, underscores the club’s commitment to literacy, education, and community development, which are key pillars of Lions Club International’s mission. “We are thrilled to mark this milestone anniversary and look forward to another year of service, fellowship, and community engagement,” Dr Bassey said.
Linus Eleke in Abuja
Second Vice District Governor, Charlz Opusunju (right), presenting Dr. Charles Bassey, the newly elected President of Abuja Mega Lions Club to the public
Banks’ Rush for Government Debt Deepens Growth Crisis
banks’ soaring earnings from government securities have become the toast of the financial markets, but beneath the glossy profit sheets lies a grim irony: the real sector that powers jobs and production is gasping for credit, writes Festus Akanbi
In recent years, Nigeria’s banking sector has maintained impressive profitability despite a sluggish macroeconomic environment. However, analysts are increasingly concerned that the source of this profitability, banks’ growing preference for investing in government securities, is deepening the credit drought in the real economy.
While the sector appears resilient on paper, the structure of earnings suggests a growing disconnect between financial performance and the country’s productive potential.
Rising Domestic Borrowing by Government
Last week, President Bola Tinubu wrote to the Senate seeking approval for a fresh N1.150 trillion loan to support the 2025 national budget.
The financing, according to the president’s communication, will be sourced from the domestic debt market. This borrowing pattern underscores the federal government’s growing reliance on local financial institutions for funding.
The mechanism is straightforward: the Debt Management Office (DMO), often in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), issues domestic debt instruments such as Treasury Bills, FGN Bonds, and Sukuk to raise capital.
These instruments are then subscribed to by banksandinstitutionalinvestors.Thearrangement provides the government with an immediate funding pipeline and offers banks a secure, high-yield investment avenue.
However, this symbiotic relationship between banks and government debt has far-reaching implications for credit availability to businesses and households.
Investment Shift and Profit Composition
Data from financial disclosures of the top-tier banks reveal that income from government securities rose sharply in 2025. Between January and September, Nigeria’s leading commercial banks collectively earned about N5.05 trillion from such investments, representing a 42 per cent increase over the same period in 2024.
Zenith Bank, Access Holdings, and UBA led the pack with earnings from government paper exceeding N900 billion each, while GTCO also reported substantial growth in similar income streams.
Across the banking system, the top ten listed banks invested over N20 trillion in government securities within two years, a level analysts describe as both lucrative and distortionary.
This shift reflects a clear trend: deposit money banks are channelling more resources into risk-free sovereign instruments rather than extending credit to the private sector. The attraction is obvious: government paper offers double-digit returns in an environment of high interest rates, minimal
default
risk, and low regulatory costs.
Impact on Lending and Credit Growth
The opportunity cost of this investment strategy is significant. By locking up a large portion of their assets in government securities, banks have constrained their ability and willingness to lend to businesses.
According to data from the CbN’s october 2025 Monetary Policy Report, the prime lending rate averaged 18.88 per cent, while the maximum lending rate hovered between 29 and 31 per cent. These high borrowing costs, coupled with tight credit conditions, have discouraged investment by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), manufacturers, and agricultural producers.
In several cases, loan-to-deposit ratios (LDR) among major banks remain between 28 and 40 per cent, below the regulatory benchmark of 65 per cent set by the CBN. This signals that even as deposits grow, the proportion channelled to productive lending remains limited.
Structural Incentives Behind
Banks’
Choices
Industry analysts point to a mix of regulatory, economic, and operational incentives driving banks’ investment behaviour.
Lending to the real economy in Nigeria carries substantial risks: weak collateral enforcement, frequent borrower defaults, unpredictable judicial outcomes, and macroeconomic volatility.
AseniorbankofficialwhospokewithTHISDAY explained that “the incentive structure is heavily skewed. Government securities offer predictable, high-yield returns without credit risk or litigation challenges. By comparison, lending to SMEs or manufacturers requires extensive monitoring, collateral management, and provisioning against potential defaults.” This calculus explains why many banks have identified “increased yields from investment securities and trading activities” as major contributors to their profit growth in their recent financial statements.
Crowding-Out Effect on Private Investment
Economists warn that this pattern of domestic financing is creating a “crowding-out effect,” where governmentborrowingabsorbsadisproportionate share of available loanable funds, leaving limited credit for the private sector.
Dr Samuel Ayo, an investment economist, noted that “banks’ preference for government paper is a rational response to the environment, but the macroeconomic impact is distortionary. As government borrowing expands, it competes with private borrowers for domestic capital. The result is that private enterprises face higher interest
rates and tighter liquidity.”
Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) support this concern. Credit to the private sector as a percentage of GDP remains below 25 per cent in Nigeria, significantly lower than the average of 50–60 per cent recorded in many peer emerging economies.
The outcome is a financial system that performs well on balance sheets but contributes less to economic expansion.
Implications for Growth and Employment
The consequences of weak credit transmission are visible in Nigeria’s growth composition. While the financial sector continues to post robust growth, sectors such as manufacturing, agriculture, and real estate show uneven performance.
Manufacturers cite credit scarcity as a key factor limiting capacity utilisation, which stood at about 56 per cent in mid-2025, according to the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN). Farmers and agribusiness operators face similar constraints in accessing structured financing for mechanisation, processing, and distribution. The creative and technology start-up sectors, though vibrant, often rely on informal or foreign funding sources due to limited access to domestic credit.
This imbalance has macroeconomic consequences. Limited productive investment restricts job creation, suppresses export competitiveness, and entrenches import dependence. In essence, while banks’ financial statements expand, the country’s productive base stagnates.
Policy Response and Regulatory Measures
Recognising the risk of excessive financialisation, regulators have taken steps to rebalance incentives. The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) recently introduced a 10 per cent withholding tax on interest income from short-term securities, aimed at discouraging speculative activity and encouraging longer-term, productive lending.
Similarly, the CBN has maintained its Loan-toDeposit Ratio (LDR) policy as a tool to compel banks to increase credit to the private sector. The apex bank also continues to promote targeted intervention schemes in agriculture, manufacturing, and small business development.
However, experts argue that these policies will have limitedimpact unlessthey arecomplemented by broader structural reforms. These include improving credit guarantee schemes, strengthening collateral registries, fast-tracking judicial processes for loan recovery, and enhancing macroeconomic stability to reduce inflation and exchange-rate volatility.
Fiscal Discipline as a Missing Link
Fiscal policy remains a critical variable in addressing the imbalance. The federal government’s growing domestic borrowing requirement, driven by recurrent expenditure and limited non-oil revenue, has effectively transformed banks into major financiers of public deficits.
Analysts say that fiscal consolidation and improved tax efficiency could reduce the government’s borrowing appetite, thereby freeing up capital for the private sector. Without such adjustments, banks will continue to find government securities more attractive than private lending. According to a report by Financial Derivatives Company(FDC),“thecombinationofhighgovernment borrowing and high interest rates creates a cycle where banks earn substantial profits from low-risk investments, while real-sector activities remain underfunded. Breaking this cycle requires both fiscal restraint and credit-enhancing reforms.”
Towards a Balanced Credit System
A more sustainable financial structure would require aligning bank incentives with national development priorities. This means strengthening the institutional frameworks that support lending, such as collateral laws, bankruptcy codes, and credit registries. It also means incentivising banks to fund sectors that generate employment, value addition, and export earnings.
Some analysts advocate a differentiated capital requirement model in which banks with greater exposure to real-sector lending receive regulatory advantages, such as lower reserve requirements. Others propose expanding credit guarantee schemes and co-lending platforms between banks and development finance institutions (DFIs).
The Broader Economic Outlook
In the short term, banks’ profitability is likely to remain strong, supported by elevated interest rates and sustained government borrowing. However, the long-term implications for economic growth are less favourable.
If the current pattern persists, Nigeria risks entrenching a dual economy, one where financial assets expand rapidly while productive capacity and job creation lag. This dynamic, analysts warn, could undermine the effectiveness of monetary policy and limit the country’s ability to achieve inclusive growth.
Conclusion
The profitability of Nigeria’s banking sector reflects a system optimised for safety and returns, but not necessarily for development. For sustainable growth, policymakers must balance fiscal borrowing with private-sector credit availability, enhance the legal environment for lending, and build stronger institutions that support risk-taking in productive investment.
The aviation ministry is driving reform with a clear focus on safety, regulation, and capacity, argues EMAMEH GABRIEL
ETIM ETIM pays tribute to Reuben Abati at 60
HATS OFF TO REUBEN KEYAMO’S TRIPLE WIN FOR NIGERIAN AVIATION
Over the past two years, Nigeria has signaled its firm intention to secure a formidable presence in the global aviation ecosystem through a dual-track strategy: pursuing deep-rooted domestic reform alongside an assertive international partnership drive. For the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, SAN, these are the twin engines powering the sector’s ascent—a mission to first fortify its foundations at home, and then strategically articulate that progress to the world.
The scale of the domestic challenge is significant. Nigeria’s aviation landscape, vital for West African connectivity, has long been defined by immense potential hampered by systemic hurdles. The government’s Renewed Hope Agenda has therefore zeroed in on a clear priority: fixing the basics.
A central pillar of this is the empowerment of the human element within the aviation ecosystem. Recognising that the most advanced technology is only as reliable as the people who operate it, this has prompted a strategic shift towards enhancing the recruitment, training, and retention of critical staff, particularly air traffic controllers. These professionals form the invisible backbone of the sector, their expertise and alertness guiding millions of passengers safely through increasingly busy skies. Modernisation efforts extend to critical infrastructure, with the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency driving forward plans to upgrade communication, navigation, and surveillance systems. This technical overhaul is designed to enhance efficiency, capacity, and, most importantly, the safety margins for all air travel within the region.
Running parallel to this operational push has been a sweeping programme of legal and regulatory reform. This initiative directly confronted a primary impediment the minister identified upon taking office: a critical lack of investor confidence. Understanding that this confidence is built on certainty and security, the Nigerian government moved decisively to align its frameworks with global best practices. The ratification and full implementation of the Cape Town Convention is a landmark achievement in this regard. For international aircraft lessors and financiers, this convention provides the legal certainty that had previously been a point of contention. It effectively de-risks asset-backed financing by clarifying and securing the rights of creditors, making the process of leasing and purchasing aircraft for Nigerian operators more straightforward and cost-effective.
Complementing this is the adoption of the Irrevocable Deregistration and Export Request Authorisation (IDERA). This mechanism acts as a crucial safeguard, assuring financiers that in the event of a default, they have a clear and enforceable path to repossess an aircraft. These reforms are not theoretical policy documents; they are practical instruments that have already begun to alter the risk calculus for international capital, unlocking new financing streams and facilitating a necessary modernisation of airline fleets across the country.
It is this demonstrable progress on domestic governance that provided the foundational credibility for the recent pitch to the international community. At a high-level business forum in Brussels, the narrative shifted from internal reform to external invitation. The message from the
Nigerian delegation was clear: Nigeria has done its homework and is now open for committed partnerships. The minister’s team led by the Director General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) Captain Chris Najomo, presented a detailed portfolio ripe for collaboration to European business leaders and investors. These included the ongoing expansion and modernisation of airport terminals and cargo facilities across the country’s network of over thirty airports, including five major international gateways. A significant focus was placed on the development of world-class Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) facilities within Nigeria, an initiative that would capture a substantial market currently served abroad, retaining revenue and creating high-skill jobs.
The vision extended to the frontiers of the industry, with calls for investment in green aviation projects. This includes exploring the development of solar-powered airport infrastructure and carbon-neutral initiatives, positioning Nigeria’s aviation sector for a sustainable future. The government also highlighted opportunities in advanced training partnerships to cultivate the next generation of pilots, engineers, and aviation managers, as well as in the integration of digital innovation to modernise air traffic systems and enhance safety analytics.
This comprehensive suite of opportunities was framed within a broader economic vision that reimagines the aviation sector not as a standalone industry, but as a central nervous system for national economic diversification, a catalyst for trade, tourism, and cross-border collaboration.
The synergy between the domestic actions and the international appeals is the most compelling part of this story. The rigorous training of an air traffic controller in Lagos directly impacts the safety metrics an international insurer would assess. The modernisation of air navigation infrastructure makes the business case for investing in a new cargo hub in Abuja significantly more robust. The legal protections offered by the Cape Town Convention give a European lessor the confidence to place a new, fuel-efficient aircraft with a Nigerian airline. Each internal reform strengthens a link in the chain, building a cohesive and attractive ecosystem for growth.
This concerted effort paints a picture of a ministry and a government that is methodically addressing the aviation sector’s challenges from the ground up. It is a strategy that acknowledges a simple truth: in the global economy, promises are cheap, but demonstrated action is the currency of trust.
Very few Nigerian journalists would be able to attract such an eminent crowd for their event like the one that assembled at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA) for the launch of Reuben Abati’s books on Friday, November 7, his 60th birthday. The author is one of our most celebrated columnists and commentators in recent history, coming a generation after Ray Ekpu; Dele Giwa; Gbolahon Ogunsanwo and many others. I met Reuben for the first time sometime in late 1998 when I joined the Editorial Board of The Guardian and he was already its Vice Chairman. We soon struck a friendship that has endured till today. It was therefore difficult to miss the landmark occasion.
Expectedly, it turned out to be a major media and social event, laced with a high dose of politics and humour. There were many important persons, including two former presidents (Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan); two governors (Alex Otti of Abia and Abba Kabir Yusuf of Kano); journalists; traditional rulers; many politicians and business chiefs. Bishop Mathew Hassan Kukah’s riveting keynote speech was the high moment of the day. He doesn’t disappoint. The last event I attended at NIIA was a colloquium held to mark the 75th birthday of Chief Don Etiebet in 2019 by Prof. Pat Utomi’s organization, Leaders and Vision. The facilities have been renovated and upgraded, but on Friday, the air conditioning system malfunctioned. However, the distinguished personalities in the audience, including Prof. Bolaji Akinyemi, NIIA’s former DG, and now, Council Chairman, didn’t seem to worry so much about the inconvenience.
Bishop Kukah spoke on the need to reset (or reload, as he called it) Nigeria, and in the context of the recent threats from President Trump, Kukah’s speech was as riveting as it was pungent. He questioned and explained some of the difficult moments our recent political experiences and concluded that Nigeria requires a total reloading. The country, he stressed, does not need good people to run it; but requires good laws because good leaders could change any time, but good laws provide enduring guardrails that protect the country from bad leaders.
As an illustration, he explained that the reason Ghanaian politicians don’t defect from one party to another after being elected as we have here in Nigeria is because there is a law that disallows that. If you must defect, a new election would be held in which the defector would not participate. Kukah did not openly canvass for that type of legislation in Nigerian, but from the reaction of the audience, it was clear that such a legislation would be highly welcome here.
Both Obasanjo and Jonathan gave brief goodwill speeches while Louis Odion, journalist, former Edo State Commissioner for Information and now Presidential adviser, reviewed the three books. Obasanjo traced his relationship with Abati to over 30 years ago and said that he was proud to call him “my son’’. But many in the audience did not understand the former president’s admonition that that since Abati had now achieved success, he should begin to pursue progress. Jonathan thanked Abati for the work he did with him as his media advisor when he was President between 2011 and 2015. The Alake of Egbaland, a first class Yoruba monarch, Oba Adedotun Aremu Gbadebo III also gave a resounding goodwill message. The Alake arrived before the 10am official time when there were few persons in the hall and stayed till the end. He explained that he had vowed, on his coronation in 2015, that he would attend any event held by any Egba son or daughter to which he was invited.
Akwa Ibom State Governor, Pastor Umo Eno, was represented by his Commissioner for Information, Aniekan Umanah and Chief Press
another reunion for Udoh and Abati. The two had worked at a romance magazine known as “Hints’’, in the early days of their career long ago. The publication was owned by former Petroleum Minister Ibe Kachikwu. Before ‘’Hints’’, Abati had worked briefly at a local newspaper known as ‘’The Hammer’’. Its founder, Najim Jimoh, who later became the editor of The Punch in the 1980s, was at the book launch. Gov. Eno celebrated Abati for a life of purposeful impact across academia, law, journalism, and public service, noting that his contributions have significantly shaped Nigeria’s democratic experience and intellectual landscape. “At 60, you have lived a purpose-driven life — first as an academic exuding deep intellectual flourishes, a policy wonk simplifying complex policies for effective governance, and as a lawyer guarding the gates of justice,” Governor Eno said, noting that Abati’s distinguished career in journalism and public communication, particularly his tenure as Presidential Spokesman, which placed him “at the centre of discourse and consequential moments in our nation’s growth and development” was an important phase of his career.
The book event was chaired by former President Obasanjo. Among those in the audience were diplomats; politicians as well as business, finance and media chiefs. They included former Governor of Ogun State, Olusegun Osoba; Chairman of Access Holdings and Coronation Group, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede; Senator Adams Oshiomhole; Publisher of THISDAY Newspapers & Chairman of ARISE News, Prince Nduka Obaigbena; former editor-in-chiefs of The Guardian, Eluem Emeka Izeze and Martin Oloja; Lagos State Commissioner for Information Gbenga Omotosho (who was also in The Guardian); Publisher of The Cable, Simon Kolawole; former Minister of Health, Prince Julius Adelusi-Adeluyi (who was introduced as Abati’s godfather and was asked to give the opening benediction); Publisher of The Guardian, Lady Maiden Alex-Ibru; Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti; and the Group Chief Branding and Communications Officer of Dangote Industries Limited, Mr. Anthony Chiejina, who represented the President of the Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote. The event ended with a long speech from the author in which he told the story of his life and thanked the guests. His children, wife Kikelomo and relatives were all present.
Gabriel writes from Lagos
Editor, Editorial Page PETER ISHAKA
Email peter.ishaka@thisdaylive.com
US-NIGERIA DIPLOMATIC ROW ON RELIGION
The violent outbursts that occur almost on daily basis are mostly not influenced by religion
For the past 65 years, the peaceful coexistence of the world’s two major faiths—Christianity and Islam—has been at the core of Nigeria’s strength and survival. Even when there are challenges of nationhood, Nigerians have confronted them together. For the United States government under President Donald Trump to now invoke a sanction that disfigures our religious diversity and mischaracterises a complex security challenge is an unhelpful act that could jeopardise the cohesiveness and sovereign integrity of our country. Regardless of the faith they profess, most Nigerians understand that at issue is the very survival of our country as a multi-religious and multi-ethnic secular state.
Already there are reports that the US military is drawing up contingency plans for potential airstrikes in Nigeria following a directive from President Trump to Pentagon. The details are still sketchy but the “light option,” which reportedly focuses on intelligence sharing, logistics support, and joint operations with Nigerian forces against Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) that are responsible for the killings and abductions of innocent citizens may seem, at least on the surface, to be pragmatic. But it cannot be based on the false premise that “Thousands of Christians are being killed” which led to the designation of Nigeria as a “country of particular concern.”
has deployed the military and committed a lot of financial resources to tackle the menace. The federal government has also embarked on strengthening and re-equipping the armed forces with new weapons, including combat aircraft from the US. It is therefore unfortunate that these dangerous narratives are coming from the same country that has been helping Nigeria to tackle the challenge of internal insecurity. But we reiterate that Nigeria values its relationship with the US with whom it shares diversity, multi culturalism and pluralism as sources of national strength and resilience.
While the federal government must do more in tackling the growing insecurity, we call on the US Congress to reconsider the latest categorisation of Nigeria as a place of interest in anti-Christian violations
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Neither the interest of the US nor that of Nigeria will be served by a characterisation that not only lacks nuance but is also potentially inflammatory. While the federal government must do more in tackling the growing insecurity, we call on the US Congress to reconsider the latest categorisation of Nigeria as a place of interest in anti-Christian violations. We urge President Trump to shun the campaign of some Christian lobby groups in Nigeria and their collaborators in the US who do not mean well for our country. We also call on all well-meaning Nigerians across the divide to speak out against this spurious allegation that can only aggravate the security situation and the cohesion of our country.
While we admit that the capacity of the state has been weakened by sundry cartels of criminal gangs operating all over the country (including in religiously and ethnically homogenous communities), there is no evidence to suggest that the multitude of violent outbursts that occur almost on daily basis has any religious colorations or undertones. The main challenge, of course, is that in the resulting weakening of state capacity, the Sahel-wide jihadist insurgency has intruded into parts of the country to conduct violent acts, including abductions and mass murder. In recent years, attacks on schools, hospitals, churches, mosques, and other public facilities have been carried out by Boko Haram and ISWAP. But these lawless groups are being confronted by the Nigerian state. For more than a decade, the federal government
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We must admit that what has given rise to these dangerous narratives is the worsening security situation and the failure of government to protect Nigerians of different faiths against terrorism and banditry. But at such a delicate time as this, the leadership of the religious organisations in the country must also recognise that this is no time to play to the gallery or fan the embers of discord. Making incendiary statements will not in any way advance the cause of peaceful co-existence in a complex and delicately balanced country. They should come together to ward off attempts to divide the country along sectarian line.
Meanwhile, if there is anything that this issue has also exposed, it is the strange statecraft of President Bola Tinubu. More than two years in office, he has refused to appoint ambassadors, not even to critical missions like the United States, China, United Kingdom, and others. How can you engage the world in absence?
Letters in response to specific publications in THiSDAY should be brief(150-200 words) and straight to the point. interested readers may send such letters along with their contact details to opinion@thisdaylive.com. we also welcome comments and opinions on topical local, national and international issues provided they are well-written and should also not be longer than (950- 1000 words). They should be sent to opinion@thisdaylive. com along with the email address and phone numbers of the writer
LETTERS
ZOHRAN MAMDANI AND THE TRIUMPH OF INCLUSION
When Zohran Mamdani, an Ugandanborn politician of Indian descent who migrated to the United States, emerged victorious as the new Mayor of New York, it became more than just another electoral story from America. His triumph resonated across continents, sparking global conversations on representation, inclusion, and the reawakening of civic trust in politics. For many, Mamdani’s victory symbolised a powerful statement that character, vision, and authenticity still matter in the age of polarisation.
Mamdani’s path to City Hall was anything but easy. As an immigrant, a Muslim, and a progressive voice, he faced a storm of hostility from powerful circles. President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk, among others, were said to have thrown their weight behind his opponents, amplifying fears that his immigrant roots and socialist ideals made him unfit for leadership. Yet,
against all odds, Mamdani not only survived the onslaught but emerged stronger, armed with nothing but a clear message of hope, justice, and inclusiveness.
What made Mamdani’s campaign remarkable was not just his defiance of elite power, but his connection with ordinary people. His grassroots outreach, his emphasis on social housing, education, climate action, and racial justice found resonance among New York’s diverse electorate. He spoke to their realities, not to their fears. In doing so, he rekindled faith in participatory democracy, the belief that leadership should reflect the people’s shared struggles and aspirations, not the privilege of a few.
It is no coincidence that Mamdani’s rise echoes that of other reform-minded figures who emerged from outside political establishments. His campaign defied the dominance of corporate funding and media
bias, relying instead on volunteerism, small donations, and community-based mobilization. That model reminded the world that authenticity, not affluence, is what truly earns public trust.
Back home in Nigeria, Mamdani’s story holds profound lessons. Our political system remains heavily tilted in favour of the wealthy and the well-connected. Elections are often a contest of money, not merit. The idea of a young, visionary leader without financial backing or godfather support ascending to power still sounds utopian. Yet his victory invites reflection. What if Nigerian politics began to reward credibility over connections? What if the masses recognised their collective power to shape outcomes beyond inducements and ethnic sentiments?
Mamdani’s triumph also reinforces the value of civic enlightenment. His message cut through misinformation because
citizens were engaged and aware. In Nigeria, the recurring crisis of leadership is not only about corrupt elites but also about the disempowered electorate that allows manipulation to thrive. Real change begins when citizens see themselves as active participants in governance, not passive observers of elite bargains. Beyond politics, his story underscores the beauty of diversity as a source of strength. America, despite its contradictions, remains a land where the son of immigrants can become a city’s chief executive. In Nigeria, where diversity often fuels division, Mamdani’s ascent serves as a reminder that inclusion is not a weakness but a path to unity. The more our institutions reflect the country’s social mosaic, the more legitimacy they command.
Abdulhamid Abdullahi Aliyu, Abuja
Donald Trump’s Quest for Regime Change in Nigeria: Untameable Killing of Christians as Pretext
The conduct and management of Nigeria’s bilateral relations with the United States is currently fraught with a political lull. President Donald Trump has threatened to engage in a ‘guns-a-blazing’ military intervention in Nigeria because of an alleged inability of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu (PBAT) to prevent the persecution of Christians in Nigeria, especially in Northern Nigeria. More disturbingly, President Trump strongly believes that ‘radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter,’ that Nigeria is a ‘disgraced country,’ and that, in the event PBAT fails to stop the unnecessary killings, Nigeria should be prepared for US military intervention. As Trump put it, the U.S. could ‘go into that now disgraced country, guns-a-blazing.’
The threat is quite interesting from two perspectives. First is the mania of the threat: what do we mean by guns-a-blazing or threatening Nigeria with all guns-a-blazing? It means that the attacks on the killers of Christians in Nigeria will be reckless by determination. The attacks will be with all force and energy. The second perspective is the US interest in fighting all those killing Christians in Nigeria. In this regard, what right has the United States under President Donald Trump to issue a threat as a sovereign state to Nigeria, another sovereign state? Is the United States acting on the basis of a Free Willing State in international relations?
Several observers have tried to answer this question on the basis of the IR2P (International Responsibility to Protect). But what is the status of IR2P in international law and relations? Is the threat consistent with the non-intervention principle provided for under Article 2(7) of the United Nations Charter? We observe here that any United States intervention in Nigeria is inconsistent with international law. Donald Trump is basically acting on the basis of his ‘Making America Great Again’ policy, but not acknowledging the deleterious implications that the policy might have at home and internationally.
MAGA as New American World Order
First, several issues are raised in the US threat. What is the implication of the consideration of Nigeria as a disgraced state? Who or what has disgraced Nigeria? Is the disgrace simply a matter of perception on the part of President Trump? Is the disgrace a fait accompli or an intention to make Nigeria a disgraced country? A second issue is the likely US engagement in a guns-a-blazing’ military intervention in Nigeria. Any act of guns-a-blazing is an act of intervention in the exclusive domestic affairs of Nigeria which is prohibited by Article 2(7) of the United Nations Charter. Thirdly, some commentators have raised the principle of International Responsibility to Protect as a justification for US military intervention. This argument cannot be logically tenable because the United States does not and cannot single-handedly constitute the international community. At best, the U.S. is only acting unilaterally and its unilateral action is again inconsistent with the spirit of Article 51 of the UN Charter which provides for protection of the collective interest for which the UNSC has a major mandate and whose approval is required following engagement in legitimate self-defence.
A fourth issue is the alleged PBAT’s inability to contain the killings of Christians in Nigeria. The act of killing of Christians cannot be separated from who is doing the killing. The hands of Islamic fundamentalists have been identified as part of the killers. Neither the United States, nor France, nor any of the European posers has been able to contain jihadist violence in the Sahel sub-region. Nigeria-US security cooperation has similarly failed to contain terrorism over the years. Consequently, holding PBAT responsible or capitalising on his inability to contain the jihadist violence in Nigeria is, at best, an untenable argument. This is why we observe that the declaration of any war against Christians in Nigeria is nothing more than a smokescreen. Our argument is that the US of Donald Trump is simply seeking a regime change in Nigeria, using the killing
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of Christians as a pretext. The US military intervention threat appears to have been designed as an illustration of the policy of ‘Make American Great Again’ (MAGA).
During the first presidency of Donald Trump, 20 January, 2017–January 20, 2021, he came up with a political agenda of ‘America First’. In other words, in whatever foreign policy undertaking that the United States would be engaged in, ‘America First’ must have the first priority or first preferential treatment at the international level, and protection of the national interests in terms of self-sufficiency and border security over and above all other considerations and multilateral agreements at the domestic level.
The policy is predicated on ‘principled realism and outcomes and not on ideology. No international commitment or treaty obligation shall override US national interests.’ The United States wants to provide global leadership by unilateralism, promote US hegemony through massive military build-up or peace through strength. ‘America First’ policy also entailed withdrawing from some international agreements and organisations, such as from the World Health Organisation, from the Paris Climate Change Accord, and from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also referred to as the Iran Nuclear Deal, etc. More important, defeating radical Islamic terror groups the world over is considered one major pillar of ‘America First’ policy. In essence, ‘America First’ policy considers economic security as national security, and therefore requiring a strict enforcement of the border, enhancement of deportation, and sustaining isolationist unilateralism.
When President Donald Trump returned to the White
As correct as James Barnett may be, if Muammar Gaddafi argued that there would never be peace in Nigeria until Nigeria is divided into Muslim North and Christian South, it means the killings of Christians have a religious dynamic. There may be other reasons for insecurity and killings of Christians but the main definienda is religion. Donald Trump cannot be faulted on that. However, he is wrong in wanting to solve the problem by guns-a-blazing. It is unlawful. The U.S. cannot even hide under the principle of IR2P because the U.S. cannot alone constitute the international community. Based on his MAGA policy, Trump simply does not want a Nigeria that can frontally challenge the U.S. which Nigeria under PBAT is doing. True, empirical proofs abound for genocidal killings of Christian. Muslims are also killed, but their killing is not genocidal in design. Genocide is internationally defined by four factors: deliberate intention to destroy; act of targeting a specific group; method of cruelty in killing (mental harm, physical destruction, prevention of birth, forceful transfer of children outside of their domain to another place, etc.). In short, genocide, as coined in 1944 by Raphael Lemkin, is not only an international crime under the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, but also a war crime and a crime against humanity. Additionally, genocide as an act or crime may not take place at once. It can be gradual in process and can procedurally have ten stages. But of the ten stages (classification of ‘us’ and ‘them’; symbolisation; discrimination; dehumanisation; organisation; polarisation; preparation; persecution; murder; and denial), denial is the crescendo of all. This is why it is difficult for the international community to accept the denial by the Government of Christian genocide in Nigeria
House, he reconceptualised his ‘America First’ of isolationist unilateralism into ‘Make America Great Again’, MAGA. The policy, unlike ‘America First,’ is very ideological. It promotes not only American nationalism, economic protectionism, social conservatism, but also sustained the pillars of ‘America First’: economic nationalism, energy dominance, prioritisation of American interests over international commitments.
What is noteworthy about the MAGA is that it necessarily assumes that America is not currently great as it used to be, and, therefore, requires making it great again. In making America great again, Donald Trump has introduced a yet-to-be-wellarticulated American new world order that is apparently and largely defined by disregard for international law, engagement in gunboat diplomacy, and a transactional stick-and-carrot diplomacy. It is within this framework that the United States of Donald Trump has threatened to engage in a guns-a-blazing military intervention against those killing Christians in Nigeria.
The immediate causal dynamic of Donald Trump’s threat was the running of a story on how Christians were being targeted by Islamic groups in Nigeria while Donald Trump was watching Fox News when travelling to Florida (vide the report of Alayna Treene, Kevin Liptak, and Haley Britzky, “Trump saw segment on Fox News. Within an hour, he was laser-focused on Christians’ treatment in Nigeria,” in edition. cnn.com, updated November 4, 2025).
According to the report, when Air Force One landed in West Palm Beach, Donald Trump began posting on Truth Social: ‘Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria. Thousands of Christians are being killed. Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter.’ It is against this background that President Trump decided to make Nigeria a ‘Country of Particular Concern’ under the International Religious Freedom Act and that he asked his Secretary of Defence, Pete Hegseth, to prepare for possible action enabling the entry into Nigeria ‘guns-a-blazing.’ What is noteworthy about this issuance of threat to Nigeria is that it is considered as an ‘art of the deal’ type of strategy, meaning that Donald Trump wants ‘to see how Nigeria responds.’ But how has Nigeria reacted or been responding to the threats?
A second causal dynamic is the recidivist character of the reports on killings of Christians in Nigeria. It should be recalled that President Trump reportedly told President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB) in 2018 at the White House about US concerns in the following words: ‘we are deeply concerned by religious violence in Nigeria, including the burning of churches and the killing and persecution of Christians. It’s a horrible story.’ This was the genesis of the initial designation of Nigeria as a ‘country of particular concern’ in 2020, when it was considered that there were ‘severe violations of religious freedoms.’ However, this consideration was reversed by the Joe Biden administration, but the particular concern remains thereafter.
A third causal dynamic for the issuance of the threat is the need to fulfil electoral promise. Trump promised to combat anti-Christian bias if elected. He therefore needs to show appreciation for the support given him by the evangelical Christians. Additionally, with the report of the Senior Adviser to the White House Faith Office, Paula White-Cain, who had travelled to Nigeria to minister, and intervention of Senator Ted Cruz, another evangelical Christian from Texas, who introduced a bill in September 2025 that sought sanctions against Nigeria for ‘ignoring and even facilitating the mass murder of Christians, the re-designation of Nigeria as a country of particular concern cannot but become a desideratum during the second coming of Donald Trump. In this regard, to what extent can Donald Trump be blamed when there are evident threats to Christianity in Northern Nigeria? If Trump is not blameable, does that mean aggressing Nigeria’s political and territorial sovereignty?
Why Killing of Christians is Untameable
The arguments on whether or not there is Christian genocide in Nigeria are most unfortunate because truths are used against truths to fabricate untruths. However, truths cannot be successfully fought even with specialised propaganda, or with weapons, or with defensive war of words. Truths can be distorted but cannot be destroyed. It is indestructible. Based on verifiable facts, we argue here that there is genocide at the level of Christians in Nigeria. Muslims have also been killed as rightly pointed out by many observers, but that does not imply genocide, because it is more of killings of Moderate Muslims by more radical Muslims. There is nothing to suggest that the killings of Muslims have a genocidal character. Muslims opposed to the neutralisation of Christians in Nigeria might have been killed, but that should not be a good basis for US unilateral military intervention in Nigeria. Only mutual respect for national sovereignty can help to define the need for any foreign military intervention and the modus operandi of the intervention if need be, should be agreed upon by both countries, especially since the containment of jihadist violence is a shared problem in both countries. Let us look at the definienda and why the killing of Christians has become untameable.
•Trump
Football Didn’t Reward Me Fully… Missing African Player of the Year Still Stings, Says Okocha
In a rare and introspective appearance on The Exchange podcast, Nigerian football legend Austin ‘Jay-Jay’ Okocha delivered a poignant revelation that struck at the heart of his otherwise glorious career, stating that the beautiful game did not fully reward his immense talents.
The iconic midfielder, whose name became synonymous with breathtaking skill and audacious showmanship, opened up about the one honour that eluded him and the lingering sense of incompletion it brings. Hosted by Femi Soneye, the conversation in the ‘White Room’ delved beyond the iconic dribbles and cheers into the mind of the man behind the magic.
Soneye introduced Okocha as “the gold standard of skill, discipline and pure showmanship,” setting the stage for a dialogue that would traverse his entire journey, from the streets of Enugu to the world’s most prestigious stadiums.
While discussing the recognition he received globally, Okocha, known for his humility, turned candid when he was asked if he felt he got the recognition he truly deserved.
“Recognition yes, I mean people still recognize me… but I can say that I didn’t get the reward that I think I deserve,” Okocha stated, introducing a thread of unresolved professional heartache. He pinpointed the specific award that continues to be a sore point decades later: the CAF African Footballer of the Year. “I didn’t win CAF African Footballer of the year,” he revealed, highlighting a glaring anomaly in his trophy cabinet. “I think I might be the only person that I’ve not won both at the same time cause you can’t be good enough for one and not good enough for the other.” This was in stark reference to his back-to-back BBC African Player of the Year wins in 2003 and 2004, a popular award that contrasted sharply with his CAF snubs.
Beyond personal accolades, Okocha offered a sharp critique on the state of Nigerian football, tracing its decline to a specific moment: the aftermath of the 2002 Africa Cup of Nations. “The team was disbanded,” he explained to a nodding Femi Soneye. He lamented the poorly managed transition that followed, which he believes led to the loss of Nigeria’s feared reputation. “We made our home our fortress, but now it’s like we’re weak at home again… we’ve lost that fear factor.”
When the conversation turned to governance, Okocha
did not shy away from his own difficult experience. Recalling his time as Chairman of the Delta State Football Association, which he famously termed a “woeful failure,” he cited a crippling lack of support and funding. “I had somebody that was not willing to work with me… I was using my money to run the FA,” he disclosed, explaining his decision to step away from a structure he found untenable.
However, the legendary playmaker left the door open for a future return to football administration at the national level, albeit reluctantly.
“Maybe because there’s nobody else left,” he said with a wry smile when Soneye asked if he would vie for the NFF presidency. He emphasized that his focus would be unflinching: “My focus will be us getting results… it’s a result business.” His most potent advice for the current NFF hierarchy was to urgently integrate former players into the system.
“They need to work with former players because some of us still have an effect on the current players,” he argued, drawing from his experience with the team at the last AFCON.
He stressed that the unique connection and respect a former
Port Harcourt Fashion Week Returns with ‘Walk for Hope
The vibrant city of Port Harcourt is set to come alive once again with creativity and couture as Port Harcourt Fashion Week (PHFW) returns to the EUI Centre from November 14 to 15, 2025.
This year’s edition brings together a dynamic mix of established fashion houses, emerging designers, and creative entrepreneurs for two days of runway showcases, exhibitions, and capacity-building sessions aimed at driving innovation and sustainability in Nigeria’s fashion industry.
A major highlight of the 2025 edition is the “Walk for Hope” runway presentation — a heartfelt celebration of senior citizens who continue to serve as beacons of hope and inspiration for younger generations. The show underscores PHFW’s theme of intergenerational creativity, blending
Vanessa Obioha
Ahead of the 17th edition of the Durban FilmMart, the Durban FilmMart Institute (DFMI) has opened the call for fiction and documentary projects in development. Approximately 20 official projects will be invited to participate in the DFM Pitch and Finance Forum alongside eight animation projects.
Project representatives will have the opportunity to pitch to a panel of film professionals consisting of potential co-producers, broadcasters, film funds, and distributors who will be gathering in Durban, South Africa from July 24 - 27, 2026. At the 2025 DFM Pitch and Finance forum, 39 cash grants, international market participation and professional
wisdom and experience with youthful imagination. Other standout segments include the Future Designer Showcase, spotlighting next-generation talent, and the Established Designers Showdown, which will feature some of the region’s most prominent fashion names. An expansive exhibition space will also showcase Port Harcourt’s finest brands, artisans, and lifestyle innovators.
“We created Port Harcourt Fashion Week to be more than a showcase — it’s a catalyst for jobs, skill development, and sustainable industry growth,” said Ngozi Anyiam, convener of PHFW. “This year’s ‘Walk for Hope’ and the Future Designer Showcase capture our commitment to intergenerational inspiration and meaningful investment in the next generation of designers.”
Since its inception, PHFW has evolved into the premier fashion platform in Rivers State, championing creativity,
entrepreneurship, and sustainability through fashion. The initiative aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by promoting decent work, economic growth, and environmentally responsible fashion practices.
Over the years, the event has attracted support from partners such as the British Council, NLNG, Port Harcourt Chamber of Commerce, Tecno Mobile, Lush Hair, MAC Cosmetics Africa, Vlisco, Lacasera, and several indigenous brands — collaborations that have helped expand market access, encourage ethical production, and strengthen the creative economy in the Niger Delta.
With its growing influence, Port Harcourt Fashion Week continues to position the city as a rising hub for African fashion and innovation, where sustainability meets style and creativity fuels opportunity.
Filmmakers with projects in development from across the African continent and the diaspora are invited to apply - at least one of the three key creatives (Producer, Writer, Director) should be from Africa or African in the Diaspora (with an African passport). The Pitch and Finance Forum is open to both series and feature-length projects.
international commands can be a decisive tool in motivating a squad. Amidst the reflections on systemic failure and personal slights, Okocha’s enduring passion for the game shone through.
He vehemently disagreed with the notion that modern players lack passion, asserting, “If you don’t love what you’re doing… you shouldn’t be doing it.”
He also fondly recalled the moments that defined his career, naming his legendary 1993 goal for Eintracht Frankfurt against Karlsruher SC and the iconic 1994 Olympic victory over Brazil as timeless highlights.
As the conversation drew to a close, the image of Austin Jay-Jay Okocha was complete: a genius fully aware of his gift, grateful for the adoration, yet forever marked by the formal validation he felt his artistry rightly earned.
His story remains one of unparalleled genius, with the missing CAF award serving as a quiet, enduring sting in an otherwise spectacular tale.
After weeks of anticipation, rising music sensation Bhad Boi OML has released his much-awaited EP, ‘Kaizen,’ now available on all major streaming platforms.
The project follows the success of his breakout single, ‘Wasiu Ayinde,’ which resonated with audiences for its soulful delivery and raw street authenticity. With ‘Kaizen,’ OML signals the next chapter in his artistic journey, one marked by sonic experimentation, emotional depth, and unfiltered originality.
Titled after the Japanese concept for continuous improvement, ‘Kaizen’ mirrors the artist’s philosophy of growth, discipline, and self-mastery. Each track reflects OML’s evolution, combining street-inspired narratives with introspection and innovative soundscapes.
Listeners first caught a glimpse of this new direction through ‘Oversability,’ the standout single that introduced what OML describes as “Apala Pop” — a fusion of traditional Apala rhythms, Afrobeats, and street influences. The record’s viral momentum and cultural texture have already positioned it as a defining moment for the artist
“‘Kaizen’ represents growth, discipline, and learning,” OML said. “It’s about staying true to where I come from while pushing the limits of what street music can be.”
Across its songs, ‘Kaizen’ captures the rhythm of contemporary Nigerian youth — confident, expressive, and rooted in identity. From reflective cuts to energetic street anthems, OML’s versatility shines through, offering a sound that bridges heritage with modern flair.
With this release, OML reinforces his standing as one of the leading voices redefining Nigerian street music. His seamless blend of indigenous rhythm and global resonance places him among the new generation carrying Afrobeats into its next era.
consultancy and mentorship awards from 31 partners worth R2 626 900.00 were presented to filmmakers pitching in the forum.
“These awards give filmmakers the needed opportunity to further develop their projects. The Durban FilmMart is pleased that we can facilitate this space for African filmmakers to connect with the local and international filmmaking community,” said director of the DFMI, Magdalene Reddy,
Successful project participants will be assigned an individual mentor to assist in preparing for the live pitch and meetings at DFM 2026. To present their project at the 17th DFM, one representative from each of the selected projects will be provided with travel and accommodation to attend the live Pitch and Finance Forum in July 2026, in Durban, South Africa.
L-r: Co-host, The exchange podcast, Joycelyn ella Keche Adah; ex-soccer star, Austin Jay-Jay Okocha; and Host, The exchange podcast, Femi Soneye, exchnaging views after Okocha’s interview session...recently
Bhad Boi
Iyke Bede
Reconstructing Leadership
In his art-decorated office, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour’s passions — history, architecture, and the desire to reshape Lagos — converge. The former Lagos State governorship candidate tells Vanessa Obioha why he views leadership as an act of creation built on empathy, unity and vision
My Confidence comes from my belief in God...
Gbadebo at work
Stepping into the office of Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, the former Labour Party governorship candidate for Lagos State in the 2023 elections, feels like walking into a living museum. The boardroom greets you with echoes of Lagos Island’s heritage. On the walls are portraits of the iconic Eyo masquerade which he described as a celebration of Lagos culture.
Inside his personal office is a diverse collection of artworks, including sculptures, historical portraits, and framed newspaper cuttings, such as one featuring his grandfather, Akinwunmi Rhodes-Vivour, in an old West African Pilot publication. Each piece tells a story for the young politician. A story, not only about his heritage but about the resistance of Africans to imperial conquest. For instance, there is an 1800 print that captures the former emperor of Ethiopia, King Menelik II as he leads his soldiers to war against the Italian colonial forces, and another showing the Benin Kingdom’s victory over the British.
Even his desk carries traces of art; a chessboard and an ayo board share space.
These artworks are more than just aesthetic for Rhodes-Vivour, they are designs of ideology, a visual manifesto of his pride, defiance and memory. The meticulous arrangement of his space mirrors his background as an architect, as one who sees the world as a canvas of interlocking systems. It also hints at his ambition to become Lagos’ number one citizen.
Both worlds often collide. His architectural background enables him to analyse the effects of poor planning in Lagos. From flooding to alleged illegal demolitions, he regularly uses his social media platforms to break down issues and propose solutions, positioning himself as a candidate with both vision and pragmatism.
But this collision also has a downside. Since he ventured into politics, many of his clients have stopped hiring. Not out of opposition, but respect, and the assumption that he may be too busy.
“So I have to remind them that I still do work. Let me design their homes,” he said, laughing.
It was one of those few moments his sense of humour showed during our conversation. For the most part, Rhodes-Vivour spoke with empathy about the plight of Nigerians, especially the underprivileged, whose rights are routinely trampled upon by leaders.
He described current leaders as selfish and divisive, often using ethnicity as a political tool. For him, the root of the problem lies in how Nigerians have been disconnected from history.
History, to Rhodes-Vivour, is not just a subject to be taught but a foundation upon which national pride and unity should be built. He has long advocated for its return to school curricula, but the kind of history he envisions is one that inspires greatness in Nigerians, a quality he believes has been eroded.
“We are more interested in dominating each other and being a pawn to the rest of the world.”
It is this disunity, he argued, that leaves Nigeria vulnerable to external ridicule and intervention. He referenced the recent comments by the U.S. President Donald Trump who threatened to send troops to Nigeria over alleged Christian genocide.
“I’ve been thinking, reading, trying to understand what my position is, and it’s so confusing. It’s so confusing because I know that Donald Trump does not love Nigerian Christians,” he said.
Despite this, he welcomes any form of attention to the plight of ordinary Nigerians.
“What do I say to the woman whose whole family was killed in Benue or in Plateau? What do I say to all the people who have been killed, and the President failed to visit them to show them love and empathy? He went to Benue to pay them a condolence visit, but instead, they lined up people to clap for him. He said he could not get to that location. Killings have been happening all over this country. Not one word from the presidency. What do I say to all those people?”
Rhodes-Vivour has never shied away from his criticism of the current administration. From its lack of empathy to the intimidation of opposition parties, and the state of infrastructure. He questioned why successive presidents under the All Progressives Congress (APC) never considered building a world-class hospital in Nigeria rather than flying abroad for treatment.
“They’re not even selfish enough to build a hospital for themselves where they and their families can be treated in Nigeria,” he said.
For him, the uproar over Trump’s comments reflects the division the ruling party has entrenched in the country.
“I know that all of this is just a war between America and China, and we are just pawns. And I’m tired of being a pawn,” he lamented. “We are great people. If you go anywhere in this world, I promise you, I’ve been to most parts of this world. You’ll see Nigerians in positions. You see Nigerians doing things. They are brilliant, industrious and great. If we even look at the African American culture and all the greatness they’ve achieved, a lot of them are sourced from Nigeria. It’s just stupid that
our Nigerian leaders have not had the vision to unite us, to unite all the people that were stolen from this land, and bring them home, because that’s part of our greatness.”
Nigeria’s greatness lies in the kind of leaders we have, he insisted, and is not about winning elections.
“Greatness is taking our position on the global stage, and we have everything to do that, mining gold is an example.”
Though critical of the government, he acknowledged its effort in stabilising the naira, yet wonders if the exchange rate can ever return to pre-APC levels.
The architect is very clear on the kind of leader Nigeria needs. A leader who is empathetic, has character and is strategic. A leader who is a man of the people.
“We need a competent and visionary leader. Some Nigerians always think that because a man has been successful in his business, it means that he will be a good governor or a good leader. No, that man has shown you he can make money for himself but not for the people,” he said. “We need a leader who can maximise our resources, a new type of visionary leadership that’s also very strategic in mind and thinking.”
He is confident that he is that kind of leader, what with his empathy and soothing voice that reminds one of a radio agony uncle who comforts callers.
“I have a lot of love for my people, and that’s why I’ve never joined APC,” he said. “I don’t think you can be in APC and be passionate about the people. Because, for the most part, you have to close your eyes to all the wrongs that are being done, and I cannot do that. That’s a great thing about being content.”
Contentment, he said, is one of the values his parents instilled in him.
“If you are not content, you will be forced to compromise and that comes with a price.”
They also taught him to leave things better than he met them and to use his privilege to help others. This ethos drives his charitable work through the Rhodes-Vivour Foundation, which, since 2022, has provided free medical outreach and palliatives to Lagos communities, giving residents access to health checks, medication, and support.
Born 42 years ago to Barrister Olawale and Mrs. Nkechi Rhodes-Vivour, Gbadebo grew up assuming a sense of leadership as the eldest child in his family. Despite coming from a lineage of lawyers, he pursued architecture at the University of Nottingham, later earning a master’s at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and another in Research and Public Policy from the University of Lagos.
His political journey began in 2017 when he ran for Ikeja Local Government chairman under the KOWA Party. In 2019, he contested for the Lagos West Senate seat under the PDP, and in 2023, he ran for governor under the Labour Party. Today, he continues that ambition under the African Democratic Congress (ADC). Earlier this year, he was installed as the Obalefun of Lagos.
Beyond politics, he is a family man. He breaks down his typical day:
““My day starts at 5 a.m. I pray and meditate, then my trainer comes in at 5:30 and we work out for one hour. Then I get ready and take my kids to school. After that, go back home, have breakfast and then come to the office. I don’t leave till 8pm, sometimes 9pm, depending on the volume of work.”
While his family remains his biggest support system, his confidence, he said, comes from his belief in God.
“It’s what gives me confidence, the ability to keep going and the conviction not to sell out.”
His vision for Lagos is one “where the government is your partner and not a hurdle.” And for Nigeria, his hope is that one day, leadership will truly come from the people, “because that’s the only time leaders will be accountable to them.”
Gbadebo installed as the Obalefun of Lagos
with KAYoDe ALFreD 08116759807, E-mail:
Riyadh’s Caution, NNPC’s Chase
Nigeria’s oil company has been courting Riyadh for months, and the romance is proving difficult. The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), freshly commercialised and perpetually cashhungry, has spent much of 2025 trying to charm Saudi financiers into a deal big enough to steady its books.
At the centre is a proposed $5billion crude-for-loan arrangement with Saudi Aramco and partner banks. In theory, Nigeria would supply up to 100,000 barrels a day in exchange for funds to cushion its foreign reserves and bankroll reforms. In practice, at least, judging from recent goings-on, Riyadh is hesitating.
The Saudis want certainty. Due to Nigeria’s oil production being hindered by theft, vandalism, and opaque accounting, it has rarely met its OPEC quota. Each time output dips, confidence falls. Aramco’s advisers are said to be worried that a crudebacked loan may end up backed by little more than promises.
So the NNPC has widened its pitch. Beyond Aramco, it has courted the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, known as BADEA, headquartered in Riyadh. Officials speak of “strategic alignment,” the kind of phrase that means both sides are still negotiating the terms of interest.
In January, ministers from both countries met in the Saudi capital to discuss more than oil. They talked mining, refineries, and infrastructure, a diversification of friendship that feels diplomatic as much as economic. Riyadh wants influence in West Africa’s energy corridor. Abuja wants Riyadh’s money.
Inside Nigeria, the pressure is immediate. Dollar shortages, weak exports, and rising debt have made the NNPC’s refinancing drive a political mission. It has suspended old oil-block sales and promised “transparent” new ones. Still, the company’s transformation from state arm to corporate entity is proving slow and uneasy.
Both sides insist the door remains open. Yet for all the handshakes and communiqués, one truth persists: Riyadh rarely rushes, and Abuja rarely waits. The NNPC may find that in Saudi diplomacy, patience is not only a virtue but also collateral.
Donald Trump, never one to whisper, has again jolted diplomacy with a tweet. Over the weekend, he accused Nigeria of allowing the killing of Christians and ordered the U.S. military to prepare for action. His words, delivered in familiar thunder, sent Abuja scrambling to contain both panic and insult.
The White House claims the move follows Nigeria’s redesignation as a “Country of Particular Concern” for violations of religious freedom. In Trump’s framing, Nigeria had failed its faithful. “They’re killing Christians in record numbers,” he declared, warning that American troops could strike if Abuja “doesn’t act fast.”
For President Bola Tinubu, the timing could not be worse. Inflation is soaring, foreign investment is flat, and public patience is thinning. Now, the country faces diplomatic shock from its oldest Western ally. Trump’s fury has painted Nigeria as both a moral offender and a failed state.
Tinubu’s government denies the charge.
According to the president’s spokesman, jihadists “kill across faiths and regions,” and Nigeria remains religiously tolerant. Many others agree to this narrative, arguing that violence in the north often targets Muslims as well as Christians, part of a deeper web of
insurgency, herder-farmer conflict, and poverty. Meanwhile, Nigeria’s diplomatic silence has not helped. Tinubu has yet to visit Washington since taking office in 2023, and key ambassadorial seats remain empty. Into that vacuum, suspicion has crept. American lawmakers cite “Christian genocide,” while Nigerian officials plead sovereignty and context. Neither side seems eager to bridge the gap.
economic ambition into the global fabric through persuasion, patience, and quiet
In private, aides say Tinubu hopes for “cool
heads.” He may find few in Trump’s circle. When U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth replied “Yes, sir” to the president’s online war call, the gesture felt halfjoke, half-warning, just enough to shake markets and ministries alike.
By Monday, Lagos newspapers ran headlines like campaign posters: Pray for Peace, Not War. Nigeria’s leader, now cast as the world’s latest reluctant villain, must learn a new art: how to calm Trump without kneeling to him.
Prince Eludoyin’s Quiet Power
reach.
Eludoyin, the billionaire chairman of Paragon Group and owner of Ikeja Mall, is spearheading what could be one of Nigeria’s largest private-led investment drives. According to reports, he is rallying Chinese multinationals to inject over $10 billion in foreign direct investment into sectors ranging from automobiles to smart agriculture. The project aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s industrialisation agenda.
For a man so visible in business, his diplomacy happens mostly behind closed doors. He is said to have personal access to more than 20 world leaders, including China’s. His latest mission: to restore confidence in Nigeria’s governance, attract investment, and promote dialogue where suspicion once lingered.
Eludoyin’s case to the world is simple. Nigeria, he says, is a country of balance, a nation led by inclusivity, where both the President’s
Karl Toriola’s Magic at MTN
Karl Toriola, the man in charge of telecommunication giant MTN, has a quiet sort of magic. It is the kind that turns spreadsheets into applause. In 2024, MTN Nigeria was bleeding red ink; a year later, it stands tall again, reporting a net profit of N750.2 billion. The trick? Not luck. Precision.
By September 2025, the telecom giant’s revenue had leapt 57 per cent to N3.73 trillion. Data was the golden goose, rising more than 70 per cent to N1.97 trillion. Voice followed close behind. The company’s 85 million subscribers seemed to be talking more, streaming more, living more online.
For Toriola, who took the helm in 2020, the turnaround is both corporate and personal. An engineer by training, he built his reputation on fixing systems: first at Ericsson, then at Econet, and later across MTN’s African subsidiaries. His career is an exercise in calm recalibration: find the fault, rewire the circuit, restore the current.
MTN Nigeria’s recovery owes as much to that methodical instinct as to better winds in the economy. The naira steadied, inflation cooled, and foreign exchange finally started to flow again. Within that window, Toriola pushed for price reforms, efficiency, and a quiet return to consumer trust.
By late 2025, the numbers told the story. Assets swelled to nearly N5 trillion. Equity, once in the red, swung positive. Retained earnings rose to N142.7 billion. The company even struck a fresh spectrum deal with T2 Mobile, strengthening its data backbone for the years ahead.
Toriola’s rise from Modakeke royalty to telecom royalty seems to follow the same logic as his business moves: know your roots, but build for the future. MTN’s rebound, in his hands, feels less like a miracle and more like maintenance. Indeed, it does feel like the conclusion of an up-market course on industry
wife and son are Christians, and key security chiefs share faith across divides. To him, such pluralism deserves recognition, not doubt. Beyond diplomacy, Eludoyin’s advocacy has a moral edge. He speaks often of poverty and insecurity as twin afflictions, urging debt relief for developing nations and calling for intelligencesharing partnerships to counter terrorism. His argument rests on symmetry: without economic stability, peace cannot last.
Few know that Eludoyin once turned down the chance to become Ooni of Ife after Oba Sijuwade died in 2015. Royal blood, yes, but his empire lies in influence, not inheritance. His throne is the quiet boardroom, his sceptre a phone that connects power to purpose. Through discretion and persuasion, he has made diplomacy sound less like negotiation and more like conversation. And perhaps that is Eludoyin’s true magic: the ability to move nations without moving lips.
excellence: that in business, as in engineering, steady current always beats sudden sparks.
Lagos Guessing Game for Governorship
In Lagos politics, silence is never empty. Even when it seems to be so, walk close enough to find it humming with calculation. As 2027 creeps closer, everyone listens for one voice to know who will carry the All Progressives Congress (APC) flag for governor. That is the voice of President Bola Tinubu. But for now, the city waits, and its politicians play their quiet chess.
The list of hopefuls grows by the week. There is Seyi Tinubu, the president’s son, still undeclared yet buoyed by whispers and diaspora endorsements. There is Akinwunmi Ambode, still courted by loyalists eager to rewrite his unfinished story. Tokunbo Abiru stands nearby: banker, senator, and loyal technocrat with Tinubu’s trust.
Meanwhile, Femi Gbajabiamila, the Chief of Staff and former Speaker, drifts into the conversation. His allies see a man seasoned by lawmaking and now armed with executive experience. His critics say Lagos needs youth, not nostalgia. At 63, his age has become a campaign before the campaign.
Mudashiru Obasa, the Assembly Speaker, has mastered the art of coyness. He says he has “not given serious thought” to being governor— then quickly adds that those before him were “not better off.” Translation: he is available. His name, like Abiru’s, hovers between ambition and discretion.
There’s reportedly also Honourable Abike Dabiri-Erewa in the ring. But she’s only allegedly interested in a deputy governorship position rather than a governorship.
The politics of geography adds spice. The IBILE zones (Ikorodu, Badagry, Ikeja, Lagos Island, and Epe) are dusting off old claims. Epe wants redemption for Ambode’s truncated tenure. Badagry asks for its first chance since 1999. Ikorodu insists that 14 days of deputy governorship never counted as power. Through it all, the president watches in silence. He, more than anyone, knows that in Lagos, endorsements are made with timing, not talk. The contenders may smile at events and pose for photos, but they are running invisible races. All in all, even the harshest critics agree that when Tinubu finally speaks, Lagos will exhale. Until then, speculation is the only campaign.
Tinubu
Trump
obasa
ojulari
eludoyin (left), with a Chinese business partner
Toriola
Prince Dipo Eludoyin does not raise his voice. Yet across continents, his calls are answered. From Beijing to Abuja, he has become the man in the middle, the one threading Nigeria’s
Elumelu’s Current Affairs
Tony Elumelu is trying to light up Nigeria, one turbine at a time. His Transnational Corporation, or Transcorp, has just finished a quiet act of engineering diplomacy: shifting four turbines from Afam in Rivers State to Delta State, where the gas flows more freely.
The relocation was born of necessity. Gas shortages in the east had left Afam’s turbines hungry. Rather than wait for promises to solidify, Transcorp’s leadership moved hardware to where supply was steady. The result: more megawatts on the national grid, and a brief, flickering victory in the country’s long, uneven war with darkness.
According to Transcorp’s CEO, Owen Omogiafo, the move is already paying off. Delta’s gas lines are stable, and Heirs Energies, another firm under Elumelu’s umbrella, has revived a key gas well to feed the turbines left behind in Afam.
In the words of Omogiafo, “We’re seeing more power generation… Our confidence is returning.” Transcorp’s numbers agree.
Quiet Revolutions of Antonia Ally
Antonia Ally does not enter a room so much as she alters its temperature. People say she has the rare gift of making purpose look effortless; compassion, almost administrative. Yet behind the calm smile lies an iron routine of service, honed over a decade of turning ideals into structure.
Her latest work, The Agbede Foundation, was launched recently in Obudu, Cross River State. The foundation targets local empowerment through education, healthcare, and youth training. Its burnt-orange emblem pays homage to her late mentor, Dr. Herbert Wigwe, whose HOW Foundation she once led. 10 years on, she carries that legacy with a steadier hand.
At HOW Foundation, she oversaw the distribution of more than 10,000 mosquito nets and 5,000 malaria drugs; numbers that sound modest until one counts the lives behind them. The United Nations noticed. In 2017, it named her a Global Peace Ambassador. She kept
It began like a quiet rumour carried by the coastal breeze of Yenagoa: Governor Douye Diri, the soft-spoken Bayelsan, had jumped ship. By mid-October, it was no longer
working quietly, unmoved by titles.
The Agbede Foundation is Ally’s next chapter. In partnership with local leaders, it runs skill-acquisition programs in Obudu, Bekwarra, and Obanliku. Participants learn entrepreneurship, digital literacy, and technical trades. A mentorship scheme threads through it all, pairing young people with professionals who teach diligence and creative resilience.
The foundation’s first major project, the Prince Bassey Otu Professional Drivers Empowerment Scheme, began on November 1. Over five years, it will train 500 drivers in safety and finance, opening doors to new livelihoods. At the launch, dignitaries clapped, traditional rulers smiled, and over 300 small grants changed hands. It was philanthropy with rhythm, not rhetoric.
Meanwhile, Ally’s national portfolio widens. As Special Adviser on Aviation to Minister Festus Keyamo, she brings her managerial precision to airport standards and volunteer
The conglomerate posted a nine-month profit of N91.4 billion, up 20 per cent from last year. Its power units now contribute over a fifth of Nigeria’s installed electricity capacity. Behind the scenes, Elumelu’s mix of capital, patience, and persuasion is doing what policy alone has not achieved: movement.
The national picture, though, is less tidy. Nigeria still wrestles with a N4 trillion debt to power firms, chronic gas supply failures, and a vandalised grid that loses nearly 40 per cent of the energy it transmits. For every turbine humming in Delta, another tower somewhere falls to theft or neglect.
Yet Elumelu’s experiment holds a hint of what could work: private initiative tuned to public urgency. If Transcorp sustains its momentum, it might prove that the power sector’s revival will not come from sweeping reform alone, but from pragmatic shifts— metal, gas, and resolve moving where they are needed most.
coordination. Service, to her, has no fixed sector; only a constant moral centre.
Ally keeps moving, but without noise. In her world, change travels not by announcement, but by quiet repetition: one good act after another.
Who Will Save PDP as Diri Douye Abandons the Sinking Ship?
speculation. The governor stood before a crowd in white shirts and orange flags, announcing that his heart—and his politics—now belonged to the APC.
Vice President Kashim Shettima led the welcoming committee. Senate President Godswill Akpabio smiled from the front row. Six governors from both the South and the Niger Delta turned up, marking what felt less like a defection and more like a coronation. Bayelsa, long painted in PDP blue, was suddenly leaning toward the centre’s red.
Diri called it a decision made “after extensive consultations.” The Bayelsa State Assembly quickly echoed his move: 23 members pledged their loyalty to the ruling party. Across the city, drums rolled and dancers filled the streets, their chants mixing celebration with a faint sense of history repeating itself.
For the PDP, the timing could not be worse. In less than a year, four sitting governors have crossed into the APC: Sheriff Oborevwori
(Delta), Umo Eno (Akwa Ibom), Peter Mbah (Enugu), and now Diri. With 25 states under its control, the ruling party now enjoys a dominance unseen since the early Fourth Republic. Even the most seasoned political historians are struggling to recall when Nigeria last leaned this far to one side.
In the old days, defections came with drama: midnight meetings, court injunctions, and talk of betrayal. Now they feel routine, almost administrative. “Alignment for development,” the defectors call it, framing political migration as infrastructure policy.
Still, what becomes of an opposition when everyone wants to be on the winning team? The PDP, once Africa’s largest party, now watches its governors trade colours for comfort. Perhaps history’s next curiosity will not be how the APC grew, but how the PDP forgot how to stay.
The Gentleman Who Taught Lagos to Love Luxury
John Obayuwana believes beauty can build a nation. That faith, being equal parts taste and tenacity, has carried him through four decades of convincing Nigerians that luxury is not foreign indulgence but local aspiration. In an age of quick wealth, his patience feels almost radical.
At Polo Luxury’s glass-wrapped boutique in Ikoyi, Obayuwana presides quietly over what looks like a ceremony but feels like a craft. The unveiling of Rolex’s new Land-Dweller last month drew a coterie of collectors, stylists, and Lagos’ discreet elite. They admired not just the watch’s gleam but the theatre of refinement Obayuwana has staged for years.
The man’s story began long before Lagos became fashionable. A banker turned merchant, Obayuwana founded Polo Luxury in the 1980s, at a time when the words “Swiss watch” barely registered in Nigerian retail. Today, his group represents the world’s most venerated maisons (including Rolex,
Cartier, Piaget, and Chopard) and has earned him the Swiss Learning Excellence Award, a first for any African.
Looking at things closely, Obayuwana treats commerce as philosophy.
His creed of beauty, craftsmanship, and exclusivity sounds romantic until one considers the discipline it demands. He insists that good taste is learned, that elegance is civic virtue, and that Nigerians deserve exposure to objects that elevate the spirit as much as they decorate the wrist.
He does not chase trends; he cultivates them. His Kings Tower boutique feels less like a store than a cultural outpost, where watches are displayed like sculptures and salesmanship is replaced by storytelling. His daughter, Jennifer, now Executive Director, continues this ritual of refinement with a calm authority that mirrors her father’s.
Beyond retail, Obayuwana supports charities and think tanks promoting social development, suggesting that beauty, in his
world, is not trivial but moral. The man who sells timepieces, it turns out, is in no hurry. He is trying to teach a hurried country how to slow down and look closely at what endures.
A Degree of Grace for Abike Dabiri-Erewa
Few public figures in Nigeria seem to have lived several professional lives in one lifetime. Abike DabiriErewa is one of them, widely considered a broadcaster who became a lawmaker, then the face of Nigeria’s diaspora diplomacy, and now, newly robed in academia’s highest honour. Last weekend, Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD), conferred on her a Doctor of Letters (D.Litt.) Honoris Causa, a recognition that feels less like surprise and more like punctuation in a long sentence of service. The Ondo State government was quick to cheer, describing her as a “visionary leader” and “icon of integrity.” Even her critics would find it hard to dispute her persistence.
At 63, Dabiri-Erewa has spent nearly five decades in the public eye. For 15 years, she anchored Newsline on NTA, becoming one of the most familiar faces on Sunday television. Then she traded the newsroom for the National Assembly, where she represented Ikorodu for three consecutive terms. She sponsored bills on freedom of information, disability rights, and child health. Some passed, some stalled, all leaving her legislative fingerprints on issues larger than party lines.
Since 2018, she has chaired the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), a post that usually feels like an emotional switchboard for a restless global community. She has handled deportations, student crises, and calls for investment summits, all while defending Nigeria’s image abroad. It is, perhaps, the most difficult kind of diplomacy: the kind that demands both empathy and endurance.
The new title, honorary as it is, comes at a time when public trust feels brittle and role models scarce. Dabiri-Erewa’s name has weathered its share of controversy, from a 2009 media bill many saw as restrictive, to more recent Twitter storms. Yet she continues to move, one steady inch at a time, through Nigeria’s fractious public space.
If every honour tells a story, this one tells of a woman who refused to fade with the studio lights
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Asari Dokubo: A Trump in f ull perspective
This one always looks overfed. You know how babies look when they have overeaten, and then you have to make them burp. You will turn them on their tummy and pat their backs till they either vomit or burp. That is what I always feel like doing to this High Chief anytime I see him on a video clip. This time around, he was challenging the American President. “They should come down and meet their graves,” he proclaimed. “Shebi they are in the sky, when they come down,
cArDoSo’S
Ayomide Macaulay is a brilliant businesswoman, and right now, she not happy. Let me first detail her angst, which is very representative of the over 13 million Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) that operate in Nigeria.
She contends that despite the huge contributions of the MSMEs, they are not getting the very best of support from the government and the system. She laments that the MSMEs are still categorised as risky in credit ratings by most commercial banks, and even added that institutions like the Bank of Industry do not even acknowledge their applications.
In her submission, which I have seen, she argues that novel initiatives by the government, like the N200 billion Intervention Fund established to support the MSMEs, are not reaching the mark. She says that despite the huge benefits this layer of businesses brings to the table, which she listed as poverty alleviation, GDP contribution, export promotions, among others, they remain unseen by the government.
I totally agree. Granted, the government, through these initiatives and other such interventions, have shown very good faith with the sector, red tape and bureaucratic inefficiencies have not really allowed for the desired impact, and this is why business owners like Ms. Macaulay are shouting for increased support.
To begin to seriously rebuild the economy and strengthen the immediate gains of this government’s economic
we will bury all of them,” he said with chubby cheeks. This kind of light-hearted treatment of a very serious issue is important, if for nothing else, for our mental health. The seriousness of an American breach of our sovereignty can only be countered if we do not rush into a national panic spree, by the wry humour of people like this, as it gives us momentary distraction from the severity of the matter. Thankfully, this particular clip has not been given mainstream
policies, which have seen reduced inflation, forex stability and others, the MSMEs must be seriously supported so as to allow them to further drill down these benefits to the people.
So, I don’t know if this action or request is rightfully Cardoso’s own as parlayed by Ms. Macaulay. Whomever’s job it is, she has cried out, and we have supported the cry; let’s wipe not only her tears but those of millions of small business owners who are really, really suffering in the trenches. Thank you.
rUebeN AbATI: A preeMpTIve STrIke
Oya ooo, Daddy is turning 60. Have you received your invite? I got a letter signed by the greatest television scholar in our history.
“My dear Joseph Edgar,” the letter read, “you have been summoned to my 60th birthday party. It is a two-day affair that will comprise a book launch on Friday and a big party on Saturday. You are to come with your own food and dress well. Edgar….. I am warning you ooo, dress well, don’t come and be wearing that your torn jeans to my party.”
I swear that was what he wrote in my letter o. If you doubt me, check me on WhatsApp, and I will send it to you.
Dr Abati has achieved iconic status in the Nigerian socio-political space. His commentaries and positions on critical national issues have made him quite popular and influential, and this is why his 60th will be heralded in the way that it is panning out to be.
We would be there, and I know that he will not give me food as he has prewarned me because he is envious of my hair. So, I will go with my own food to
attention but circulated within the prisms of rogue social media. I am just putting it here as a softer way to introduce my column this week, so that readers can easily digest the seriousness that I will be tackling in my stories. Thankfully, I do not think anyone – Americans, the Government or even Nigerians are taking him seriously, and as such, we should just leave that his tirade at the level that it is –wry, dark humour without an audience. Thank you.
celebrate one of the most important media men this country has produced.
birthday in advance, my Lord.
Please, if you have not seen that clip, go and look for it. A long time ago, when this bobo was a senator, he stood up in the Senate and cried to an empty hall. His speech on the security situation was touching and harrowing. He lamented the situation and talked about how our leaders had full protection, leaving out the common man on the street. He talked about the daily killings and the maiming of Nigerians. Oh, he was at his oratorial best as he passionately and emotionally cried for Nigeria and Nigerians.
Senator Melaye is prone to theatrics and drama, but this time, his drama served him very well as he was very lucid in his painting of the security situation in the country. The chambers were near empty, delineating the seriousness or lack of that he was being taken. Today, he has been kicked out of the Senate, refused to come back, but his words have come back to bite us. Following the increasing dire state of security in the country, we are being threatened with an invasion by a “madman.”
Shebi, if we don’t respect ourselves, we will be disgraced. Imagine issuing that kind of threat to a country of 200 million, like we were just one small local government in his backyard. But do you blame him? Who in their right senses will blame him after seeing the
from Benue,
and other such hotspots? Dino cried, and we did not listen. Shikena.
SeNATor NeD Nwoko: oN YoUr MANDATe we STAND
While we are preparing for the American attack, Senator Ned Nwoko and his beautiful wife are feeding us with very exciting distractions. For those of you who have been living under a rock, Senator Nwoko is the Delta State Senator who has been in a running battle with his last and extremely beautiful wife, the delectable actress better known as Regina Daniels. The marriage has been going through a massive crack recently, as she has been alleged to haveleft the house under some very distasteful circumstances. Allegations of domestic violence and drug taking have been thrown either way, and Nigerians have taken sides. Well, as a polygamy apologist, you will certainly understand where I would be standing on this matter. Senator Nwoko is not a very likeable man. A lot of people don’t like him, as could be gleaned from public commentary, but I stand by him on this one as a fellow polygamist.
We must all come together to support one of our leading lights under this kind of stress. If Ned fails, then we all fail. It is not easy to have four wives and still keep them intact in Nigeria of today. It is in this guise that I will be calling an emergency meeting of our association to deliberate very seriously on the matter of our senior member in a bid to fashion out ways and means that we could
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lend our support to him in this trying moment.
See, Ned has been a poster boy for our association. His skillful management of four very delectable women had catapulted him into iconic status. You see, even our immortalised forefather, Fela Kuti, did not achieve what Senator Ned has achieved, especially with the gorgeousness of his own wives, hence a little bit higher rating than Fela in our scales. It is for this reason and more that we would meet and release a communiqué, stating very clearly our position that we support Ned in this matter and will do everything within our powers to ensure that Regina comes back home where she truly belongs, and failure which we will work with Ned to secure a veritable replacement as we do not condone “rubbish” in our association.
But tarry, the Judas Iscariot in me is beginning to wake up o. Mbok watching Regina Daniels video last night, something in me began to pray for the whole thing not to be resolved o. Mbok, the girl is fine, chai. No wonder the great senator has been alleged to have refused to take back his bride price – I will not o with her kind of beauty. Anyways, I have always been known to be very humanitarian and understanding in my approach to things like this, and it is in this regard that I offer to take custody of Regina as a stopgap measure for things to calm down, after which I will willingly lead her back to her rightful place in the Senator’s home. What else can I do as a man of peace who is always ready to work very assiduously to settle matters? So please, anybody with access to the two parties, kindly send my request to take custody of Regina and keep her safe and away from the bad influences that Senator has talked about and then work very closely with my mentor in seeking an amicable resolution. Afterwards, I will deliver her back safe and sound when we have achieved a consensus.
I am just doing this for peace and for the country. Thank you.
AbDUl-GANIYU ObASA: MAN IN THe MIrrOr
His father, Mudashiru Obasa, is the substantive Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, and today he is the acting Chairman of a local government in Lagos – I think Agege. My people, if you don’t already know, Lagos politics is now a monarchy with the second generation of our leaders taking over all over the place. From commissioners to special advisers to local government chairmen to almost everything. What you see are popular names holding these positions as if there is a deliberate succession plan that has been forged without the people’s consent. This case in point is funny, although not illegal. This is a clear case of, “we see what you are doing but can’t do anything about it because you have done it well.”
Those who are very familiar with the story alleged that AbdulGaniyu, was first nominated by his father as APC chairmanship candidate for Agege LGA. People cried, shouted, and even threatened. So the man listened to their cries and nominated someone else. That someone else turned around and nominated Obasa’s son as vice chairman. They both won the election in July.
Three months later, the chairman feigned sickness and peacefully resigned to make way for Obasa’s son to take the main seat as the new
Chairman of Agege LGA.
The opposition has pointed out, the whole thing just looks too convenient. There is God ooo.
A ClOSer lOOk AT FUNSHO DOHerTY
I think we have reached a point in our country, especially with this Trump wahala, that we can no longer be saying – he is a good man, but he cannot win. See where the ones that can “win” have taken us to. We are now labelled a “disgrace of a country.”
For me, that Trump intervention should now be seen as a wake-up call to all full-blooded Nigerians, and that is why I am now looking very closely at the candidacy of this “young” man in Lagos. I still have one very strong and favourite candidate within that their APC enclave in Lagos, but where he fails, I will move very seriously towards Mr. Doherty, who has shown a glib understanding of the kind of transparency required to run a citystate like Lagos.
I think the time has finally come for us to veritably and deliberately break the yoke of the oppressors in our polity. Mbok, enough is enough. The patrimony must come down, and we the people must be allowed to push in our true leaders who will now come and work for the people and not work to uphold a tendency which is decidedly not for the people.
It is for this reason that we should be looking very closely at Mr. Doherty in a view to giving him substantial backing to push aggressively towards the seat when the time comes.
pOSTMODerN ArT
AIGbOJe AIG-IMOUkHUeDe: A DIve INTO
Tate is a group of art galleries that houses the British national collection. It provides a befitting nexus for contemporary art the world over. It is this unique place that my brother “Aig” has gone to deliver the biggest ever exhibition in the organisation’s 25-year history. A display of modern Nigerian arts, inclusive of paintings, sculptures and other forms of creative art, was on display at the worldfamous gallery. From what I have learnt, over 300 Nigerian works were on display, and such legendary artists as Ben Enwonwu also displayed their works, which spanned from the 1940s to the 1980s.
If I say I understand this area, I am lying, but what I know is the seriousness with which its promoters take the thing globally and the value attached to some of these works. I also know for a fact that the Access/Coronation Group has one of the most valuable art collections in the world, hence the unique need to show the rest of the world, which
ended up being lapped up by the largest crowd opening that the Tate had ever seen.
When I see these works, I used to look at them, and the work would look back at me too. I will be wondering at how they arrived at the price tags, but then again, when a true collector like my brothers Chike Iroegbunam and Robert Mbonu point at a big head on canvas and say, “Edgar, that work is N36 million,” I will look at them and hiss and walk away. They will smile and call me illiterate.
Anyways, Aig at his opening speech at the event talked about cultural capital as one of the three main capitals a nation needs and, on that strength, Nigeria as we have always known, is imbued with a very rich tapestry of beautiful talent that can hold their own anywhere in the world and it is grand gestures like this Tate showing that will continue to shine global sights on our local artistry. Well done, sir, quite remarkable.
Mr. Doherty, please don’t vex for my initial attack on you. I was a small boy at that time, and I wasn’t even circumcised. Things are different now, and we must behave differently. Thank you, and I wish you well.
CAN we STOp HArASSING OMOYele SOwOre?
Is it that with all that is happening that the whole Nigerian Police Force has nothing else to do than to be pursuing Omoyele Sowore all over the place? From one arrest to the other, from one arraignment to the other and now being declared wanted in Lagos. Mbok, what is it? The whole issue, according to Deji Adeyanju, is beginning to look personal. Mbok, what is wrong with declaring to protest over a policy the man feels is draconian, that is warranting him being labelled “wanted”?
The last time I checked, protest is allowed under a democracy as long as he follows due procedure, and the police are duty-bound to work with him, ensuring safety and public order. Has the man even done the protest that we are now declaring him wanted? Thankfully, I have just seen a report that a High Court in Lagos has quashed that crap. Mbok, let the man carry out his protest peacefully, and take his bath and rest.
The police’s interest in Sowore is looking one kind now abeg, and should stop immediately. It is getting too much. Thank you.
JOHN eDOzIeN: A wArM AND INSpIrING MOMeNT
Oh, I had a wonderful time the other day at the home of Chief John Edozien, the former Chairman of the SEC and Deputy Governor of the old Bendel State. I was so warmly received by him and his beautiful wife, who serenaded me to the point that Ibibio man started to blush o.
“Oh, Duke, we love watching you on ARISE TV,” she said. “My husband and I love it when you are on air and don’t even watch when you are not there. In fact, I am sure the women will soon beat you,” she concluded. Such a beautiful couple. Chief is still very, very good-looking for his age, and Mummy is the epitome of physical beauty. As they spoke, I was just wondering why “dem” fine like this, even at this age.
Chief Edozien is a repository of history and knowledge, as he took me through certain historical milestones. He talked about the formation of Delta State, where he was the first Chairman of the New Towns Development Board, his stint in Delta and other such historical things.
The Asaba matter was also in view, and he gave me a lucid description of the happenings and how they affected his family.
At the end of the session, I felt so fulfilled and educated on a tough aspect of Nigeria’s history. I must quickly thank their beautiful daughter, Yvonne, who used to be my colleague at BGL, for coordinating the meeting.
That was an afternoon well spent, I swear.
With Improved Security, Uba Sani Turns Kaduna to Nigeria’s Food and Agricultural Hub
Abdulkareem rahman
In Kaduna today, the story of renewal is not merely one of security regained; it is a chronicle of vision, discipline, and purpose. Under the ebullient and visionary leadership of Governor Uba Sani, the State has transformed the restoration of peace into a catalyst for agricultural revolution and human prosperity. The once-muted hum of abandoned farmlands now resounds with the cadence of tractors, harvesters, and the laughter of farmers who have reclaimed their dignity and destiny. Kaduna, once on the edge of uncertainty, now stands as the agricultural heartbeat of Nigeria, its soil enriched not only by nature’s bounty but by the deliberate cultivation of enlightened policy and bold governance.
The emergence of Kaduna as the nation’s agricultural powerhouse is no accident. It is the product of method, of a leader’s conviction that peace must bear fruit and security must translate into sustenance. When Senator Uba Sani assumed office in May 2023, he inherited a State scarred by years of insecurity and rural displacement. Yet he refused to be bound by that legacy of fear. Through what has come to be celebrated as the Kaduna Peace Model, a fusion of intelligence-sharing, community partnership, and inter-agency collaboration, he restored confidence to farmers, traders, and investors alike. Vast expanses of once-deserted land were reclaimed, and rural communities began to stir again with the rhythm of enterprise. The farmer’s hoe, once silenced by anxiety, began to sing again beneath the open Kaduna sky.
But Senator Uba Sani’s genius lies not only in securing peace but in converting it into prosperity. He has demonstrated that security without economic empowerment is an unfinished triumph. Thus, as the guns fell silent, the tractors roared. In just two years, Kaduna’s agricultural budget has leapt from a modest N1.48 billion in 2023 to an unprecedented N74.02 billion in 2025. This historic surge, nearly five thousand percent, not only surpasses the Malabo Declaration target but also symbolizes a profound shift in priorities: from survival to abundance, from subsistence to sustainability. In a country still struggling with food inflation and rural poverty, Kaduna’s bold investment in agriculture stands as a luminous example of what visionary subnational leadership can achieve.
Every kobo of that investment has been guided by a clear moral and developmental compass. Fertilizer distribution on a scale never
before witnessed in the State; more than nine hundred truckloads delivered to smallholder farmers, has revitalized rural production and slashed input scarcity. Irrigation schemes at Kangimi and Mashigin Kaya are being rehabilitated, unlocking all-season farming for tens of thousands of families. The deployment of hundreds of tractors, 500 power tillers, and 10,000 solar-powered pumps has mechanized cultivation across vast landscapes, reducing drudgery and enhancing yield. In a state blessed with over 4.5 million hectares of arable land and a youthful population brimming with energy, this strategic mechanization is nothing less than a declaration of intent: that Kaduna will feed the nation, and do so with efficiency and dignity.
Governor Uba Sani’s administration has also married vision with partnership. The creation of the Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zone, in collaboration with the African Development Bank and other partners, reflects a modern understanding of agriculture as an ecosystem of value, logistics, and innovation. These agroindustrial clusters, equipped with power, ICT infrastructure, and transport facilities, are nurturing a new generation of agripreneurs; youths who view the farm not as drudgery but as enterprise. Complementing this is the Agricultural QualityAssurance Centre, designed to position Kaduna’s produce for global markets under the African Continental Free Trade Area. By aligning local production with international standards, Uba Sani is effectively linking the farmer in Giwa or Kachia with consumers in Accra, Nairobi, and beyond.
This integration of local strength and global opportunity is further exemplified in Kaduna’s partnership with China. The State’s selection as one of six sites for the Nigeria–China Poultry Project, and as the pilot state for its launch, marks an extraordinary vote of confidence in Kaduna’s stability and leadership. The project, covering 10,000 hectares for maize and soybean cultivation and one of Africa’s largest poultry facilities, is expected to generate $450 million in revenue and create 50,000 direct jobs. It will produce over a million eggs daily; a staggering symbol of Kaduna’s ascent as Nigeria’s food hub. This partnership, built on mutual respect and shared vision, encapsulates the Governor’s diplomatic dexterity and his unrelenting pursuit of investment that uplifts his people.
If agriculture has become the engine of Kaduna’s transformation, nutrition has become its soul. The partnership with UNICEF for the statewide distribution of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) is a testament to Uba Sani’s compassion for the vulnerable. This initiative, aimed at ending severe acute
malnutrition among children, ensures that no child is denied the right to grow and thrive. It complements broader interventions in health, education, and water sanitation, illustrating a governance philosophy that sees development as indivisible; where food security, human capital, and dignity converge. UNICEF’s commendation of Kaduna as the first State to adopt and fully implement the RUTF programme only underscores the administration’s consistency, transparency, and sense of duty.
Beyond the fields and silos, Uba Sani’s reforms reach deep into the financial and social architecture of the State. Recognizing that the prosperity of farmers must rest on access to finance and inclusion, he issued his very first Executive Order on Financial Inclusion; a move that has since opened more than 2.5 million new bank accounts and brought nearly seven million residents into the formal financial system. For the farmer, this means more than a number; it is a gateway to credit, insurance, and empowerment.
Over 100,000 smallholders are now enrolled under the State’s agricultural insurance scheme, shielding them from the caprices of weather and market volatility. It is the practical expression of a government that sees resilience as both an economic and ethical imperative.
The governor’s holistic approach to agriculture also encompasses the arteries that connect the farm to the market. Through the Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), sixteen rural roads are being rehabilitated, linking producers with consumers, and reducing postharvest losses that have long haunted Nigeria’s food system. As these feeder roads carve new paths of connectivity, they also pave the way for rural prosperity: small towns humming again with trade, storage, and enterprise. Simultaneously, a $122 million partnership with StarAgri West Africa is constructing and refurbishing storage facilities with a combined capacity of three million metric tonnes, ensuring that Kaduna’s harvests no longer perish in the open sun but flow through organized value chains that sustain livelihoods and stabilize prices.
At the heart of all these initiatives is a moral conviction that governance must be felt in the granaries, not just the galleries. For Uba Sani, agriculture is both policy and poetry; a means of giving meaning to peace. His tone at the opening of the 47th National Council on Agriculture and Food Security was therefore not celebratory, but visionary. In welcoming the nation’s top agricultural minds to Kaduna, he presented the State as a living laboratory of what can be achieved when courage meets clarity. He spoke of the farmer’s resilience as the country’s hidden wealth, of food security
as the new frontier of national survival, and of Kaduna’s leadership as a beacon for all of Nigeria. The Council’s decision to convene in Kaduna was itself an acknowledgment of this transformation: a salute to a State that has turned adversity into abundance.
Under Governor Sani’s stewardship, the Kaduna Peace Model has become both shield and plough. It protects the people while enabling production. It transforms vigilance into productivity and converts the fragile calm of yesterday into the confident progress of today. From the ginger fields of Kachia to the tomato belts of Zaria, from the maize plains of Birnin Gwari to the soybean expanses of Soba, the rhythm of revival is unmistakable. Agriculture now contributes 43 percent to Kaduna’s GDP and employs more than 60 percent of its citizens. These are not mere statistics; they are the lifeblood of a people rediscovering their strength through the stewardship of a leader who governs with empathy and precision.
As Kaduna’s story unfolds, it is becoming evident that Governor Sani’s approach transcends administration; it is a philosophy of nation-building. He has proven that security is not an end in itself but the soil from which prosperity grows. He has shown that when governance aligns with purpose, even the most wounded communities can blossom again. His leadership has given Kaduna a new vocabulary; one that speaks not of division but of development, not of fear but of faith. In every sense, he is cultivating not just the land but the spirit of his people.
Today, Kaduna stands tall as Nigeria’s food and agricultural hub; a model of inclusive growth, pragmatic investment, and sustained peace. Its fields are greener, its farmers more confident, its children better nourished, and its future brighter. In transforming peace into productivity, Governor Sani has not only rewritten Kaduna’s story; he has offered Nigeria a masterclass in visionary governance. The golden grains that rise from its soil, the eggs that fill its markets, and the smiles that light up its villages all bear silent testimony to a leader who understands that the true harvest of leadership is the well-being of the people.
In Kaduna, the seeds of security have blossomed into the fruits of abundance. And at the heart of that flourishing stands a Governor whose vision, passion, and humanity continue to make Kaduna not only the pride of the North, but the hope of the nation.
• Rahman, an agricultural-economist and farmer, resides in
Zaria, Kaduna State.
Kaduna state Governor, Uba sani (fourth left), Minister of Agriculture and Food security, senator Abubakar Kyari (second left), Minister of state for Agriculture, senator Aliyu sabi Abdullahi (third left), commissioners for Agriculture (second left) from all states and leading stakeholders in the agricultural sector
Ten Years On, ART X Lagos Ignites a New Era of African Creativity
a decade after redefining africa’s art landscape, aRT X Lagos marks its tenth anniversary with a vibrant celebration that reaffirms Lagos as the continent’s creative heartbeat.
Yinka olatunbosun reports
Ten years ago, in Lagos — Nigeria’s vibrant commercial capital — a bold vision took root. ART X Lagos, conceived by Tokini Peterside-Schwebig as an international art fair, made its debut and instantly electrified the country’s art scene. The arrival of international galleries and media signalled a new era for African contemporary art.
Now in 2025, West Africa’s leading art fair returned in grand style for its tenth edition, tagged “10X.” Held from November 6 to 9 at the Federal Palace, Lagos, the milestone fair featured an expanded format, new venues, and a rich line-up of exhibitions and performances celebrating a decade of African creativity.
Since its 2016 debut, ART X Lagos has become a cornerstone of Africa’s art ecosystem and a global destination, attracting galleries and artists from more than 70 countries and participants from over 170 nations.
This year’s edition brought together a formidable curatorial team — Lanre Masha, Missla Libsekal, Jumoke Sanwo, and Fikayo Adebajo — whose programming spanned visual art, music, film, design, and literature.
Over the years, the fair has amplified the voices of African artists and curators while inspiring the emergence of Lagos Art Week and a thriving annual art season. Today, it anchors Nigeria’s cultural calendar and reinforces Lagos’s status as a global creative hub.
Reflecting on the journey, Peterside-Schwebig said: “Our tenth edition marks an important milestone and a moment to reflect on how Nigeria’s art scene has evolved. From the outset, our vision was to champion how African creativity is seen and valued. That vision has grown into a movement connecting artists, communities, and audiences across borders.”
For its landmark anniversary, ART X Lagos expanded across four locations within the Federal Palace — including the Balmoral Marquee, Ballroom Marquee, Lobby, and Waterfront Garden — with 15 curated galleries showcasing leading and emerging artists from Africa and its diaspora.
The debut Spotlight Galleries section introduced a new generation of exhibitors such as ADEGBOLA, AMG Projects, and Nomadic Art Gallery.
Special projects curated by Missla Libsekal featured Nengi Omuku’s “External Realities, Internal Geographies”, sponsored by Chapel Hill Denham, and Temitayo Ogunbiyi’s “Where There Is Life, There Is Hope”, sponsored by emPLE, both exploring art’s relationship with memory and environment.
A highlight of the fair was the inaugural ART X ICON
exhibition, An Exacting Eye, honouring legendary photographer J.D. ’Okhai Ojeikere, sponsored by Zenith Bank. His six-decade archive offered a powerful record of Nigeria’s social evolution.
A related Masterclass, led by his son Amaize Ojeikere, mentored young photographers, while Rachel Seidu’s live studio, Portraits of Modernity, invited visitors to co-create contemporary cultural artefacts.
Sculptural installations also took centre stage — Dennis Osadebe’s “MASS (Devotion)” reimagined collective spirituality, while Sokari Douglas Camp’s “Asoebi” forged ceremonial fabric into steel, transforming softness into strength.
Other highlights included The Library, sponsored by Stanbic IBTC Pensions, a reflective space featuring works by Bruce Onobrakpeya and materials from the G.A.S. Foundation Art Library; and The Speakers’ Corner, curated by Fikayo Adebajo, a participatory installation by Mitimeth inspired by the resilience of mangroves.
ART X Cinema, curated by Tega Okiti, screened works by Akinola Davies (My Father’s Shadow) and Mati Diop (Dahomey, Atlantique), while ART
X Live!, sponsored by EnjoyCorp, thrilled audiences with performances by The Cavemen, LLona, Braye, and Ameaya under the theme From the Roots.
At ART X Talks, leading voices including Akinbode Akinbiyi, Mati Diop, and Nike Davies-Okundaye shared insights in a rare intergenerational dialogue with masters Bruce Onobrakpeya, Jimoh Buraimoh, and Muraina Oyelami, in partnership with kó gallery.
In commemoration of its tenth year, ART X Lagos launched Resonance, an annual Paris residency for artists, designers, and curators, in partnership with the Embassy of France in Nigeria and Cité Internationale des Arts. The inaugural fellows — Mobolaji Ogunrosoye, Olorunfemi Adewuyi, and Tony Agbapuonwu — will each undertake three-month residencies in Paris.
Educational and family-focused programmes, including the Schools’ Programme, The Development Forum, and Tales by Moonlight, reaffirmed the fair’s commitment to community engagement and creative continuity.
As ART X Lagos 2025 concludes, it stands as more than an art fair — it is a movement redefining how African creativity is celebrated and understood. A decade after its inception, the dream born in Lagos continues to illuminate Africa’s boundless artistic horizon.
L-R: Lanre Masha, Tokini Peterside-Schwebig, Missla Libsekal, Jumoke Sanwo and Fikayo Adebajo at the launch of 'X10' in Lagos.
Guest engaging wtih artwork at Ko Gallery 2024 Courtesy of ART X Lagos
Art Breathes While a Nation Gasps
Okechukwu Uwaezuoke
For one art-drenched week in late october, the Institute of management and Technology enugu’s International Conference Centre gives itself over to its annual rendezvous. LImCAF — that irrepressible jamboree officially known as Life in my CityArt Festival — once again turns the venue’s echoing recesses and spacious auditorium into a carnival of paint and pulse. What has become tradition now feels more like ritual: a younger generation of artists inhaling the nation’s anxieties and exhaling them as spectacle. The 2025 theme, Can We breathe?, drifts over the proceedings like smog thick with sermon — an existential gasp rendered in pigment, protest, and the occasional knowing flourish.
Interpretations of the theme, inevitably, come in many shades — earnest and ironic alike. It is the parable of the six blind men of Hindostan all over again — only this time, the elephant is Nigeria, and the men arrive armed with diplomas, degrees, or long studio experience.
Take Segun victor owolabi’s “entanglement: Sad Generation with Happy Faces”, which clinches the $2,000 elder K.U. Kalu Prize for Young Artist of the Year. His shimmering textile tableaux stitch irony into despair — youth wrapped in bright patterns, angst disguised as aesthetic. This is the post-Instagram generation, filtered and fatigued, rendered thread by thread. If ennui is a textile, owolabi is its tailor.
elsewhere, the camera bears witness. Abubakar mohammed’s photographic diptych “e FonaA’da Na” I and II, winner of the Chinelo Chime Prize, confronts viewers with two seemingly unrelated compositions — two young boys curled in fetal repose on bare stony ground, and a rustic landscape
capturing the aftermath of the Mokwa flood. The work seems to trap breath itself mid-flight. Patricia Ikel bello’s “At the Foot of Her mercy”, which takes best Painting/mixed media, indicts the justice system through pigment and restraint, while mba Ukemba’s sculptural “man” lays the blame squarely at humanity’s doorstep for being the author of its own misfortunes. And then there is Audu Phillip Iko, whose ceramic “Yes We Can and We Will” re-fires Barack Obama’s optimism in the kiln of irony — hope as handcrafted resistance. If the sound of the times could be rendered in texture, it might look like Ipa Anyaole’s “voices Unheard”, winner of best Digital Art/video. In a cascade of murmurs and playful montage of four shots of the same female face, Anyaole spins silence into substance — a meditation on how absence, too, can be eloquent. Her lens doesn’t just see; it eavesdrops. meanwhile, Harry Joel Gunduri’s
“Hope in the Shadows”, winner for best Drawing, makes graphite breathe. His figures hover between exhaustion and endurance, sketching faith with the precision of a man teaching a candle to hope. Among the women who rise to the occasion, Chinenye eze’s “Life rut” — which earns her the most Creative Female Artist award — hints at stagnation born of dogmatism. Her ceramic forms, poised between paralysis and persistence, look as though they are trying to remember how to breathe. ogbodo Daniel’s “Trap in radiance”, winner of best Artist Living with Disability, shimmers with paradox — beauty caught in its own snare, light arguing with confinement. Both artists turn constraint into choreography, proving that fragility, when fired, can be a form of defiance. beyond the prizes, LImCAF’s pulse comes from artists who turn suffocation into style. Babatunde omotehinse’s “How much for breather” prices oxygen like a commodity — a seated, dreadlocked figure tethered to a respirator, wheezing in desperation against the backdrop of modernity’s blasted landscape. Akinsowon James’s “Let It All make Sense” sighs for the jobless and overqualified, each brushstroke drooping under the weight of dashed ambition. Dada Nifemi Tunde’s “Still I rise” imagines a woman drowning in headlines yet lit from within — hope flickering like a faulty bulb but refusing to die.
Some offer despair in subtler tones. Stephen Nwofoke ekenedirichukwu dreams of animals inheriting the moral conscience humans pawned off long ago — a soft apocalypse rendered in allegory. Joseph Aimanesi Steve’s “The Trauma of the economy” submerges a man — literally — in the quicksand of capitalism.And babatope Samuel oladimeji’s “more Than Life Itself” sits in prayer that is less pious than tactical: faith repurposed as survival strategy. but if rhythm is a religion, Alimi Adekunle Abraham is its quiet prophet. His batiks pulse
like soft percussion, each motif a heartbeat refusing to flatline. Adebiyi Michael Temi-Tope (aka mike Wheeler) goes full anarchist with “bearers of Chaos”, recasting the suited arsonist as Nigeria’s national mascot — ambition and accelerant in one. David Chizoba Nwadike’s “Since 1960”, painted on a battered car door, is part sculpture, part national obituary — rust as realism. Ahmed michael’s “A man’s Diary” writes tenderness into vulnerability, while Ifeoluwa oliver Akinbobola’s “A Whispered Promise” places a child at the crossroads of fatigue and inheritance. Danjuma Sumdi misak’s “A beacon of Hope in a World of Conflict” glows faintly, like a hymn sung through cracked lips. money, predictably, claims its spotlight in David Imoleayo Alao’s “breathless Pursuits”, which orchestrates a ballet of exhaustion — figures chasing naira until the air gives out. ojo John olawale’s charcoals and mafeng Davou Pam’s graphite piece “Here We Are” form a quieter chorus of endurance — graphite hymns to survival. And Bilkisu Oyiza Shuaibu’s “Suffocating Dreams” captures a bare-shouldered, cigarette-smoking dreadlocked young woman mid-compromise — ambition dimming like a failing bulb. by the festival’s close, the audience seems to inhale in relief. The applause that ripples through the auditorium feels like communal exhalation — a nation briefly oxygenated by art. LIMCAF 2025 isn’t merely a competition; it’s a test of endurance disguised as exhibition.
Here are artists who arrive smarting from the nation’s hard truths and leave lighter, their ideas cross-pollinated into small, oxygen-rich rebellions. Their works offer not answers but respirations — proof that creation itself is a way of breathing through collapse. In the end, the question lingers like incense in the auditorium: Can we breathe? The answer? If the festival’s spirit is any measure, then yes — if only for a moment.
A New Prize for Creative Arts to Inspire Young Filmmakers
Yinka Olatunbosun
Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG) has reaffirmed its commitment to nurturing homegrown talent with the launch of The Nigeria Prize for Creative Arts, a new category designed to celebrate and empower young filmmakers.
replacing The Nigeria Prize for Literary Criticism, the new award will focus on short documentary films that tell compelling stories about Nigeria’s people, culture, and identity.
According to NLNG, the prize is targeted at Nigerians aged 18 to 35 and aims to inspire them to use film as a tool for reshaping global perceptions of the country while deepening national pride and cultural understanding.
The maiden edition, themed “Identity,” will reward the best short documentary that captures the essence of being Nigerian. The winner will receive $20,000, with the first call for entries opening in February 2026.
At a press briefing held at the Marriott Hotel, Lagos, Sophia Horsfall, NLNG’s General manager
for external relations and Sustainable Development, described the initiative as an extension of the company’s belief in storytelling as a vehicle for nation-building.
“The Nigeria Prize for CreativeArts is an invitation for young Nigerians to own their narrative — to show the world our brilliance, resilience, and complexity through film,” Horsfall said. “Every frame, every story, and every voice matters in shaping who we are as a people.”
Horsfall added that the new category aligns with NLNG’s broader mission of national development by connecting with Nigeria’s dynamic youth and thriving creative industry.
The prize joins The Nigeria Prize for Science and The Nigeria Prize for Literature in NLNG’s long-running programme celebrating excellence across disciplines.
TheAdvisory board for The Nigeria Prizes, chaired by Professor Akachi Adimora-ezeigbo, will oversee the new award. other members include emeritus Professor olu obafemi and ProfessorAhmed Yerima.
ProfessorAdimora-ezeigbo described the initiative as a natural evolution of NLNG’s legacy of excellence.
L-R: Joel Benson, Technical Adviser to Advisory Board of The Nigeria Prize for Creative Arts (NPCA); Anne-Marie Palmer-Ikuku, NLNG's Manager, Corporate Communication & Public Affairs; Sophia Horsfall, NLNG's GM, External Relations & Sustainable Development; and NPCA Advisory Board members, Prof Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo (Chairman), and Emeritus Prof. Olu Obafemi, at the unveiling of prize with focus on Documentary filmmaking in Lagos
“excellence knows no boundary — it can be written, spoken, or filmed,” she said. “This prize challenges young documentary filmmakers to explore memory, question experience, and translate reality into meaning.”
She assured that the new category would uphold the same standards of integrity and transparency that have defined NLNG’s prizes for over two
decades.
To ensure global credibility, NLNG has appointed EmmyAward-winning filmmaker Joel Kachi Benson as Technical Adviser to the Advisory board. benson explained that entries would be judged according to international documentary festival standards, with only short films not exceeding 20 minutes eligible for submission.
Stop the Presses, Now the Journalists Have Turned Fiction
There’s something delightfully renegade about culture journalists deciding to write fiction. It’s a bit like food critics opening a restaurant—or art curators suddenly stepping onto the canvas. Yet with moonbeam: An Anthology of Short Stories by Nigeria’s Foremost Culture Journalists, the departure is gentle, luminous, and—dare one say—beautifully copy-edited. Published by the sleekly intrepid Narrative Landscape Press, moonbeam gathers 15 of Nigeria’s culture journalists—veterans of the country’s arts desks and literary supplements— and places them, somewhat audaciously, at the centre of the creative frame. The result? A
gleaming compendium that proves those who chronicle art can, with equal aplomb, become the dramatis personae. edited by Anote Ajeluorou, former Arts editor of The Guardian and publisher of TheArtHubNg, the collection reads like a deft exercise in cultural multitasking. It assembles a formidable cast: Sam omatseye, chair of The Nation’s editorial board and indefatigable wordsmith; Adeniyi Kunu, radio man of gravitas at Lagos Talk Fm; okechukwu Uwaezuoke, a decade-long former deputy editor (Sunday) and current arts editor at THISDAY; Terh Agbedeh, the editor of thisislagos.ng and lagosreview.ng; and Henry Akubuiro, literary editor of The Sun. Also orbiting in this creative constellation are
Jahman Anikulapo, Toni Kan, molara Wood, Abubakar Adam Ibrahim, Nehru odeh, Sumaila Umaisha, Greg Nwakunor, and the ever-musical Akeem Lasisi—proof that Nigeria’s cultural beat reporters have long harboured secret manuscripts alongside their press passes. And then there is evelyn osagie, who dreamed moonbeam into being but passed on before she could hold a copy in her hands. The book is dedicated to her memory, a fitting tribute to a woman who saw art not as luxury but as oxygen. At Quramo Festival of Words (QFest 2025) in october, the eko Hotel ballroom shimmered with the anthology’s debut. A panel on “The Place of Anthologies in a book ecosystem” featured contributors trading insights and gentle jabs about the blurred lines between reportage and reverie—a newsroom turned round-table of dreamers.
A scene from the exhibition
Yinka Olatunbosun
IN THE ARENA
Trump’s Wake-up Call to Nigeria
In spite of the manner it was received, the United States designation of Nigeria as a ‘Country of Particular Concern’ offers an opportunity for the Nigerian government to tackle insecurity and uphold good governance, Davidson Iriekpen writes
The federal government is currently challenging the designation of Nigeria as a ‘Country of particular Concern’ (CpC) by the United States president, Mr. Donald Trump.
Trump had cited alleged widespread killings of Christians as his reason.
A Country of particular Concern designation under the International religious Freedom Act represents one of the most serious diplomatic rebukes the United States can issue. It signals that a government has either engaged in or tolerated systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom.
The designation comes with potential consequences, including sanctions, travel restrictions on government officials, and limitations on security assistance.
More significantly, it places Nigeria alongside countries like China, russia, Iran, and North Korea on a list of the world’s worst violators of religious freedom.
It is a devastating blow to Nigeria’s international reputation and a clear message that the world is no longer willing to ignore the alleged bloodshed going on in-country.
But president Bola Tinubu vehemently debunked the allegation, declaring that the Nigerian government protects citizens of all faiths and will never encourage religious persecution.
Tinubu, had in a six-paragraph statement, explained that Nigeria stands firmly as a democracy governed by constitutional guarantees of religious liberty, adding that since 2023, when he assumed office, he has maintained an open and active engagement with Christian and Muslim leaders alike and continues to address security challenges that affect citizens across faiths and regions.
“The characterisation of Nigeria as religiously intolerant does not reflect our national reality, nor does it take into consideration the consistent and sincere efforts of the government to safeguard freedom of religion and beliefs for all Nigerians.
“religious freedom and tolerance have been a core tenet of our collective identity and shall always remain so. Nigeria opposes religious persecution and does not encourage it,” Tinubu stressed.
Also last Thursday, Tinubu assured the US that his administration is committed to defeating terrorism in Nigeria. He emphasised that Nigeria will continue to engage with its international partners, undeterred by current diplomatic tensions.
The Nigerian Tinubu assured the nation of his administration’s commitment to defeating terrorism.
In its reaction, the federal government, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, explained that Nigerians of all faiths have long lived, worked, and worshipped together peacefully.
It equally stated that the Tinubu administration remains committed to fighting terrorism, strengthening interfaith harmony, and protecting the lives and rights of all Nigerians. while appreciating the global concern for human rights and religious freedom in Nigeria, the federal government vehemently rejected Trump’s tag of a “Country of particular Concern” on Nigeria, insisting that the claim of genocide against Christians does not reflect the situation on the ground.
The situation got worse when Trump, barely 24 hours after, said he had ordered the Department of war to prepare for possible military operations in Nigeria. He also threatened to immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria.
He further added that the US would carry out military action against the country to completely wipe out those he described as the Islamic terrorists responsible for the killing of Christians.
The issue has since divided Nigerians along religious and ethnic lines. while many Christian communities believed to be facing existential threats in the hands of terrorists are jubilating that for once their cries have heard abroad, the Muslim communities are wondering if their lives do not matter in the equation, having equally lost a large number of persons since the last two decades when insecurity started in the country.
while observers have attributed Trump’s actions to Nigeria’s recent bid to join the BrICS nations; its growing ties with China in the solid minerals sector; and its rejection of US deportee repatriations, what cannot be denied is that almost
daily, people are being killed by terrorised across the country.
There is no doubt that Christians have suffered greatly, villages have been razed, churches burnt, pastors kidnapped and killed, and congregants massacred, many Muslims too have been victims of the same terrorism, often at the hands of the same armed groups, professing Islam.
To frame the crisis solely through a religious lens risks deepening sectarian divides and undermining the possibility of unified national action against violence.
Many have accused successive governments, including theTinubu-led administration of ignoring the sacking of indigenous communities and the forceful occupation of their ancestral lands.
Since Boko Haram launched its insurgency in 2009, Nigeria’s security landscape has grown increasingly fragile. what began as a regional insurgency in the North-east has evolved into a complex web of violence stretching across the country.
Armed groups, often indistinguishable from terrorists, ravage villages, kidnap residents, and loot resources with little resistance. Nigeria has become a fertile ground for them to operate unchallenged.
The consequences of these are visible everywhere: Communities uprooted, farmlands abandoned, highways turned into ambush zones, and thousands of citizens reduced to live in internally displaced persons’ camps.
The situation is most frustrating when the federal and the state governments have not
p OLITICAL NOT e S
been able to effectively address the menace. each year, thousands are killed in terrorists and bandits’ attacks. reports indicate that nearly 5,000 people have died this year alone.
Section 14(2)(b) of the Constitution squarely puts the security and welfare of the people as the primary purpose of government but the Nigerian government is neglecting in his regard.
In fact, on several occasions and fora, many Nigerians have had to accuse the federal government of indifference.The political class concentrate efforts on the politics of 2027, at the expense of the people.
This is why they believe that the US designation of Nigeria didn’t happen in vacuum, it reflects years of lack of political will by successive Nigerian governments to confront the challenge.
This glaring absence of commitment to justice and accountability has fuelled allegations of complicity.
If terrorists and militias are genuinely criminal groups operating outside state control, why aren’t security forces arresting them? If they’re terrorists threatening national security, why aren’t they being prosecuted?
There are allegations that the groups sacking indigenous communities and occupying their lands operate with official protection or are tolerated by some elements within Nigeria’s security architecture.
Multiple credible reports document how security forces arrive hours after attacks despite communities alerting authorities before the raids.
In many other documented cases, security forces refused to pursue fleeing attackers, and in some other cases, actively prevented communities from defending themselves. Some survivors reported how security personnel withdrew from areas just before attacks occurred, suggesting foreknowledge, if not coordination and complicity. This pattern of complicity extends to the judicial system, where arrested suspects are always released without prosecution.
To further complicate matter, security agencies have not been able to demonstrate adequate capacity to decisively deal with the situation. Successive service chiefs have failed repeatedly to meet the expectations of Nigerians.
Now is the time for the federal government to take decisive action to address the country’s worsening insecurity before it spirals into a confrontation with the United States.
It will be far more prudent - and humane - for Nigeria to safeguard its citizens’ lives than to leave its fate to foreign intervention. Trump’s warning, however politically charged, should serve as a wake-up call to the Tinubu administration.
This is no moment for rhetoric, grandstanding or pushing sovereign narratives. what Nigeria needs now is a clear strategy, strong leadership, and urgent action to show that it is not complicit but also ready to exhibit capacity and competence.
Last Tuesday, the Oyo State High Court sitting in IbadanclearedthePeoplesDemocraticParty(PDP)to proceedwithitsscheduledelectivenationalconvention on November 15 and 16, 2025.
In a ruling delivered by Justice A. L. Akintola, the court granted an interim order allowing the party to hold the convention as planned in Ibadan, Oyo State.
The court also directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to attend, monitor, and observe the exercise, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive motion on notice.
The claimant had urged the court to restrain the defendantsfromtruncating,frustrating,ordisrupting the timetable, guidelines, and schedule of activities leading to the convention.
AfterhearingthemotiononMonday,JusticeAkintola
heldthattheclaimantsuccessfullydemonstratedthe needforurgentjudicialintervention.Heconsequently granted the interim orders sought, restraining any interference with the PDP’s timetable and schedule of activities, and compelling the defendants to hold the national convention as fixed.
ThecourtordercameafterJusticeJamesOmotosho oftheFederalHighCourtinAbujahadlastFridayhalted the same planned national convention until the party complieswiththestatutoryrequirementsoftheparty, the Constitution, and the Electoral Act.
Inajudgementhedelivered,thejudgealsorestrained the INEC from accepting a report on the outcome of anynationalconventionofthepartywithoutfollowing the due process of the law, as well as its guidelines and regulations.
Now,anothercourt,astateHighCourtwithconcurrentjurisdiction,hascomeupwithacounterjudgment. So which decision should INEC obey?
Whatishappeninginthepartyisclearlyasupremacy battle;andthejudiciaryhasbeendraggedintoit.Ithas now degenerated to who controls the courts more.
This is not the first time Nigerians would be experiencing this. It is very common this period; a period where the judiciary will rubbish itself with conflicting judgements and orders.
ThisiswhytheNationalJudicialCouncil(NJC)must quicklyinterveneandsanctionintheerringjudgeinviting judge in the PDP dispute, otherwise with the 2027 elections fast approaching, the issue of conflicting orders and judgements will ridicule the judiciary and Nigeria’sdemocracyinamostembarrassingmanner.
Tinubu
Trump
Justice Kekere-ekun
BRIEFING NOTES
2027: Dwindling Opposition against APC
With the factionalisation of the Peoples Democratic Party and the Labour Party, the coast is getting increasingly clear for the All Progressives Congress’ victory in the 2027 general election as the African Democratic Congress, which is yet to win elective offices, seems to be the only major opposition party that will slug it out with the ruling party, ejiofor Alike reports
This is the best of times for the politicians who are disguising themselves as members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party (LP) but actually working for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
While some of these PDP and LP members were suspected to have been sponsored by the agents of the ruling APC to destabilise these two opposition parties, others are disgruntled members of the opposition parties playing anti-party roles for personal reasons and without external influence.
The dissident factions in these parties appear to enjoy the support of the APC-led government.
Ironically, officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which is supposed to regulate and unite political parties for the advancement of the country’s democracy, are believed to be fuelling the internal leadership crises in the two parties.
Temporary peace had returned in the PDP when the party recognised Senator Samuel Anyanwu, an ally of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, as the National Secretary.
Anyanwu’s position as the PDP’s national secretary came under dispute after he contested the November 11, 2023 governorship election in Imo State as majority of the party leaders insisted that he had lost his position after he emerged as the party’s governorship candidate in April 2023.
Though the majority of the party’s leaders had supported Sunday Ude Okoye as his replacement, protracted litigation forced them to recognise Anyanwu.
However, Anyanwu’s recognition did not end the leadership crisis as the party continued to fight him and other Wike’s loyalists who are suspected to be APC moles working to destroy the party ahead of the 2027 general election.
Anyanwu and other Wike’s loyalists opposed the National Convention of the party fixed for November 15 and 16 at Ibadan, Oyo State, to elect new national officers, Wike’s loyalists sought and obtained the judgment of Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja restraining the PDP from proceeding with its planned convention in Ibadan until further notice, in a suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/2120/2025. However, the party insisted on going ahead with the convention.
The Oyo State High Court presided by Justice A. L. Akintola also granted the party approval to proceed with its national convention.
The crisis got to a peak when the party suspended Anyanwu; the National Legal Adviser, Kamaldeen Ajibade (SAN); Deputy National Legal Adviser, Okechukwu Osuoha; and National Organising Secretary, Umaru Bature, for one month.
But in a swift reaction, Anyanwu’s faction, backed by Wike, announced the suspension of the Acting National Chairman, Ambassador Umar Iliya Damagum, and five other members of the NWC.
In a dramatic turn of events, the Acting Chairman of the Anyanwu-led faction, Abdulrahman Mohammed, stormed the National Secretariat of the party and assumed leadership amidst tight security, strengthening the speculations that the faction is backed by the APC-led government to destabilise the party.
Efforts by PDP leaders and a group of staff members to evict Anyanwu from his office on the third floor, were met with stiff resistance from policemen stationed at the secretariat, who fired tear gas to disperse them.
Wike, who is backing this faction, has never hidden his intention to work for the victory of the APC in the 2027 general election.
With the police and other security agencies backing the splinter faction allegedly working for the APC, the main opposition party will remain in disarray and won’t be a match to the APC in 2027.
Leadership crisis had also weakened the Labour Party (LP), having been split into two factions – Julius Abure-led faction, and Senator Nenadi Usman-led faction.
Under the former leadership of Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, INEC had de-recognised the Abure-led faction.
However, the commission did not expressly pronounce the Usman-led leadership as the authentic faction, leaving the fate of the party and its aspirants vying for various elective offices in the off-season elections and the 2027 general election to hang in the air.
The allegation of INEC’s complicity in the LP crisis deepened when the Usman-led faction demanded the arrest of the then Acting Chairman of the INEC, Mrs. May Agbamuche-Mbu, for what the LP faction described as alleged criminal collusion with Abure.
In a statement signed by Usman’s spokesman, Ken Asogwa, in Abuja, the party described the decision of the Acting INEC boss to invite Abure to a meeting with the leadership of the 18 registered political parties despite a subsisting Supreme Court judgment, as reckless.
Asogwa said that the INEC boss claimed that she was merely obeying a court order, which does not exist.
But in a swift reaction, the Abure’s faction, through a statement signed by its spokesperson, Obiora Ifoh, threatened to write a petition to the NBA against Asogwa, who is a lawyer, for describing a validly issued order of a court as fake.
The presidential candidate of the PDP in the 2023 general election, Atiku Abubakar; his counterpart in the LP, Peter Obi; former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai; former Sokoto State governor, Senator Aminu Tambuwal, and other opposition leaders had alleged that President Tinubu and the ruling party
were destabilising the opposition parties. But the APC National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, said Tinubu and the party “have no idle time to meddle in broken opposition parties.”
Morka said the opposition leaders had failed to provide effective leadership for their parties, which he described as “rudderless” and weakened by internal contradictions.
With internal crises rendering the PDP and LP too weak to wrestle power from the APC in the 2027 polls, the ruling party will have only the African Democratic Congress (ADC) to contend with.
However, the capacity of the ADC to challenge the ruling party is also doubtful as the party does not have members in elective positions.
President Tinubu’s statement that it was his pleasure to witness the opposition parties in such disarray lent credence to the speculations that the ruling party is behind the crises in the opposition parties. He said this while addressing a joint session of the National Assembly in June to mark 25 years of uninterrupted democracy in Nigeria.
“I have no plans to turn Nigeria into a oneparty state. I have never altered the registration of any political party in INEC. I will be the last person to advocate such a thing.
“Political parties fearful of members leaving may be better served by examining their internal processes and affairs rather than fearfully conjuring up demons that do not exist. For me, I would say try your best to put your house in order. I will not help you do so. It is, indeed, a pleasure to witness you in such disarray,” Tinubu reportedly added.
wike’s Attack on Opposition over Insecurity
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, recently said the allegations that Christians are being targeted and killed in Nigeria under President Bola Tinubu’s administration are politically-motivated.
Speaking during a television interview, Wike described the genocide claim as “politics taken too far.”
The minister’s comments came after US President Donald Trump threatened military action against Nigeria over the alleged killing of Christians.
Asked if opposition was fuelling the narrative of a Christian genocide, Wike said, “It is very obvious, and I have said this.”
He added: “The problem we have today is that, Mr. President, the very nature of politics means
you can see the collapse of the opposition. It will be difficult for anybody. The opposition today has seen that no party is prepared to challenge the president returning to power.”
Wike added that no Nigerian leader takes pleasure in the killings happening in any part of the country.
For Wike, everything must have political colouration. It is surprising that he would finger the opposition for the security challenges the country is currently experiencing.
Wike should blame the political class for over concentrating on politics at the expense of good governance. They should blame themselves for not protecting the lives of both Christians and Muslims.
Did he see opposition politicians in the viral
videos of religious leaders who went to the US to complain about the persecution of Christians? Has he not been reading reports on hundreds of persons being killed in Plateau, Benue, Borno, Zamfara, Kwara and several other states?
Even when he was governor of Rivers State, he visited Benue State under Governor Samuel Ortom when tens of people were killed during the late President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
Today, terrorists are still slaughtering hundreds and burning down their homes.
The minister needs to tell political leaders like himself the home truth that they need to suspend politics of 2027 and concentrate on how to tackle the security challenges confronting the country.
Damagum
Amupitan
Nenadi Usman
Nigeria: Time to Reload
Dr. Reuben Abati is 60. This means he is much younger than our dear country Nigeria. However, his accomplishments in this very short period of time is one of the reasons why I am proud of what our country will still achieve, what my friend, Dr. Kayode Fayemi has described as Nigeria’s unfinished greatness. However, looking back, we must admit that standards have fallen in terms of what young Nigerians achieved before now especially in the area of the media. Remember the debonair, pacesetting Okpanam born, Chris Okolie who, at the age of 26, founded the scintillating Newbreed Magazine. Nduka Obaigbena followed by starting The Week at the age of 23. Peter Enahoro edited the Daily Times at the age of 24. Ernest Ikoli edited the Daily Times at a tender age. Anthony Enahoro was 26 when he moved the motion for Nigeria’s independence. Joseph Tarka entered the House of Representatives at the age of 26. So, when did the discount hunters come from? What happened? Today, an over 30 year old man or woman will have great difficulties becoming an Editor. Is the problem with the system or with the youths? Whatever it is, it is settled that a generation must seize its moment or lose history’s tide.
Shakespeare says so in Julius Caesar:
“There is a tide in the affairs of men, Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;
Omitted, all the voyage of their life Is bound in shallows and in miseries.”
(Act IV, Scene iii)
2: To reload is to start afresh. Nigeria’s “reload” must begin in the mind — a moral and imaginative renewal. In Milton’s Paradise Lost, we are told that “The mind is its own place, and in itself Can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven.” There are very many reasons why Nigeria must re-load. A marksman reloads for many reasons. First, he may have failed in his first attempt. May be the gun was not loaded. Maybe the gun was loaded but he was not good enough. Or, perhaps his object moved. Whatever may be the reasons for failure, you re-load and hope to correct the mistakes you may have made. You then go ahead to try again. Hitler was a lucky man. The 42 attempts to kill him all failed. No matter how many times we fail, we must continue to try.
3: I encourage us to reload because missed targets offer us opportunities to rethink and recreate new options and opportunities. Francis Bacon said so: “He that will not apply new remedies must expect new evils; for time is the greatest innovator.” No matter how much one loves this country, we cannot explain away all the opportunities we have missed. Although we cannot turn back the hands of time, as they say, even a bad clock is right twice a day. However, we can at least attempt to journey together as pilgrims of hope, learning from the mistakes of the past and seeking to dream new dreams. National greatness lies in identifying and correcting past mistakes, not focusing on recrimination and self-flagellation.
Nationalism, it is said, requires memory, and memory requires reverence. Nineteenth Century Canadian poet and journalist, Joseph Howe, had a counsel here: “A wise nation preserves its records, gathers up its monuments, decorates the tombs of its illustrious dead, repairs its greatest structures and fosters national pride and love of country by perpetual references to the sacrifices and glories of the past.” The Chinese celebrate their one-year long march that covered about 6000 kilometers. The Voortrekkers Monument in Kwazulu Natal, South Africa, stands as testimony of the victory of the 464 Afrikaaners who, on December 16th, 1836 (known as the day of the vow), defeated over 20,000 Zulus at the Battle of the Blood River and took over the land! July 4th is America’s independence day because that is the day that the Declaration of Independence was adopted. Thanksgiving Day celebrated on the last Thursday of every November, draws inspiration from the first action by the pilgrim fathers and their local Indian population way back in 1621. Normandy Day is marked every June 6th every year to remember the military operations that ended with the defeat of the Nazis. These events often re-enkindle memories that help to inspire and reinforce nationalism. Edmund Burke in ‘Reflections on the Revolution in France’ wrote that “People will not look forward to posterity who never look backward to their ancestors.”
Nationalism is a tree that must be watered. Can you name one single event that Nigerians get excited about?
Nigeria is a nation of paradox; a nation of greatly gifted people full of potential, yet we are a mass of people mired in disillusionment. Why? We look at our politics and we wonder, will we ever get it right? What stories, myths or memories does Nigeria have to inspire patriotism among us? Which sacrifices and labours of our leaders past can we draw inspiration from? Nigeria has become a country permanently on a boiler plate of self-doubt and almost self-abnegation. A country at war with itself. We think about the endless border wars, the severe fracture even in social networks and we wonder, when will we all live in peace among ourselves? When will we create minimum standards of welfare that will ensure that we can take the basic things of a good life for granted. For example, safe maternal and infant maternal environments, ending hunger and destitution, basic standard of education for all our children? We ask, when will the almost 60,000 abandoned projects spread across Nigeria ever be completed? Given the staggering rate and range of our economic hemorrhage through illicit financial flows, we ask ourselves, when will we achieve some level of economic equilibrium? With citizens retreating into the womb of ethnicity, with religion becoming the source of inspiration for violence and death, our questions are many and all-encompassing with very little answers. It is an open question whether can successfully reach a finishing line. Perhaps, in the end, we have to come to terms with the fact that there are really no final destination in the dream of nations. In the end, it is more a question of holding together and believing that no matter the turbulence, our eyes are still set on the dreams of building a united nation.
Perhaps we may need to ask questions such as, where did all go wrong? Or was it wrong from the beginning? If so, which beginning? We know that every modern country today has its own peculiar history. None has been free from the savagery of conquerors, oppressors, or enslavers. If we are to start from the beginning, we will have to start from the Garden of Eden. Yet, even there, no sooner had God placed the first two human creatures Adam and Eve in the garden than trouble started over obedience to just one commandment. The first family had only two children, yet, with no external provocation from any neighbour, the first murder took place. Here, we draw the first lesson that, living together even as a family has its challenges. A peaceful Nigeria should be measured not by the absence of problems, rather, the existence of platforms that enable citizens to feel a sense of fairness. Nations live with the oxygen that they draw from the myths of identity, myths of great men and women who came before. The myths are often constructed around their struggles. They become the vehicles for legitimation and validation, their memories inspire sacrifice and pride. Telling and re-telling them inspires the next generation and they become embedded in memory and often form part of what is called, civil religion. These myths and the telling of them help to inspire the next generation which often passes them to the next generation. This is what Moses meant when he enjoined the people of Israel to remember the word of God; when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them on your hands, and between your eyes. You shall write
them on them on the doorpost of your house (Dt. 6: 7-8). Every country today speaks about the dreams or the visions of its founding fathers, those men and women whose sacrifices brought them to where they are. Some of these men and women have been elevated almost to the status of demigods. Legitimacy of certain decisions has to be aligned to the thinking of these great men and women. Myths and anthologies are often deployed to ensure that their lives continue to inspire the nation. Today, think of the lessons of the great Nelson Mandela.
When the United States of America speak of their founding fathers, they refer to; Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, John Adams, John Jay, Alex Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson. Despite his fame, Abraham Lincoln is not considered a founding father as he came much later. Their memories are sustained against the backdrop of the myths constructed about them over time. These founding fathers gave the country the Declaration of Independence (1776) and wrote the nation’s Constitution (1878. Independence came after almost a hundred years. However, the inspiration for what forms the foundations of America values derives from multiple sources.
Primarily, the Bible formed the furnace upon which all the inspiration of the founding fathers was hammered. Along with the Bible was the inspiration derived from philosophers like Plato, Aristotle, Jock Locke, Thomas Hobbes, Montesquieu, Immanuel Kant, Jean Jacques Rosseau, Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Thomas Paine among many others. These philosophers propounded different theories about life, death, society, government, peace, war and justice. They debated the role of the state, ensuring individual safety and the pursuit of happiness. Was society above or beneath government? People like John Locke believed that society was more important than government and that the business of government was to protect the freedom of the individual, hence the notion of limited government.
: Issues of freedom, the individual and government have dominated politics. For example, how much of human freedom can the state take from the individual and for what? Rosseau, due to the circumstances of his personal life, feared freedom and believed that more power should be in the hands of the state. Ceding much power to the people could lead to anarchy and mob violence. The Leviathan, as he called the state, should be given so much power that it can enjoy unlimited protection. Left on his own devices, Rosseau argued, individuals could descend to a state of nature where, unrestrained, life could be nasty, brutish and short. Philosophers like Immanuel Kant share Rosseau’s sentiments because he argued for total obedience to the state’s authority on the grounds that either way, it was better to have even a bad state with bad laws than to have no state and no laws! Successive governments in the United States have revolved around these values.
The 1630 sermon of John Winthrop, first Governor of the Massachusetts Bay colony, an English Puritan lawyer provided the foundation for the development of these moral sentiments on which the founding fathers would continue to build. It was in the sermon that he conceived of the new colony as a city on the hill, drawing inspiration from the exhortation of Jesus that a city set on a hill cannot be hidden (Mt. 5:14).
Drawing from Prophet Micah, he enjoined his people in the sermon to act justly, love tenderly and to walk humbly with our God. These sentiments account for the deep moral fibre of the American polity. Today, these sentiments formed the moral foundation for such expressions in the American public psyche as: In God we Trust, Manifest destiny, God’s own country, Subsequently, after the war, the Declaration of Independence evokes these emotions when it said: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. Today, America holds these values and vision with near sacredness. They provide the guardrails for ensuring the preservation of the vision of their founding fathers. They account for the near sacredness attached to the Constitution. Taken together with the principles of separation of powers, they have made the country the most powerful nation on earth, whatever may be the controversies of the moment.
The Chinese on the other hand have built their civilization and by extension the social and political
fabric of their country around the philosophical teachings of Confucius, the 5th century Chinese philosopher. The Analects, the collection of some of his teachings read like the Book of Wisdom in the Bible. For example, in what sounds almost like the golden rule, Confucius says, Never impose on others what you will not choose for yourself. Drawing from Confucius, the Chinese have developed their politics around what is called, the Doctrine of the Mean. The philosophy of the mean enjoins people to avoid excesses and extremes, to seek balance and moderation. Using the pendulum as a model, this teaching assumes that extremism should be avoided while balance and equilibrium should be sought. Virtue is what helps to manage these extremes. This is why, even though China is a multiparty Democracy, it has ensured that its so-called Democracy functions within the boundaries of doctrine of the mean, seeing opposition as an extreme from the mean.
: Many people will be surprised to hear that China can claim to have a multiparty political system. Yes, they do. These parties are little surrogates who survive on the basis of what the Chinese Communist Party, CCP, calls, multi-party cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the CCP. Yes, China is a multi-party country and there is even one party called, China Democratic League. The only right that these parties have is the right to accept the supremacy of the CCP. We can go on and on about other countries around the world. The point here is that every country has its history. So, coming to our country Nigeria, the question now is, who are our founding fathers? What was the founding philosophy? What is it about their lives that we can hold up to for inspiration today? As a former British colony, Nigeria’s history of growth and development reads quite differently. Written largely in the smoke-filled rooms of British subterfuge, some of these intrigues have been well documented in very many books. The Harold Smith Story: A Squalid End to Empire tells part of this gory story. Dele Ogun’s A Fatherless People demonstrates how Nigeria came to be an ideological orphan, lacking in a source of moral authority for its national development. Mr. Ogun speaks eloquently about things that might have been in our politics, had the British not done all they did to manipulate outcomes to favour northern Nigeria. We are still paying the price. “Who controls the past controls the future; who controls the present controls the past” (George Orwell:1984).
In form and content, we have remained what the British sculpted of us. For example, while in the United Kingdom as a student, Mr. Obafemi Awolowo had fallen under the spell of Fabianism. This left-wing group made up of Socialists who congregated around its philosophy would later become the launch pad for the Labour Party. The Fabian Society founded the London School of Economics and Political Science in 1895. It inspired such legendary leaders like Jawaharl Nehru and Lee Kwan Yew, 50 former Heads of States and 20 Nobel Laureates. Such a man like Awolowo, inspired by the Labour Party would naturally have struck anxiety to Harold McMillan of the Conservative Party who was then the British Prime Minister as Nigeria prepared for independence. Mr. NnamdiAzikiwe, having been exposed to the radical politics of the United States (itself a former British colony) posed a similar threat. These explain the maneuverings that ensured that neither of these two emerged to lead Nigeria after independence.
Today, we all recall the anecdotal account of the imagined conversation between Nnamdi Azikiwe and the Sardauna regarding the future of the country. As it went, Nnamdi Azikiwe pleaded with Sardauna that they should sink their differences in other to build a united nation together. The Sardauna was said to have told Nnamdi Azikiwe that it was more important to understand the differences rather than forgetting them. The difference between forgetting and remembering still haunts us till date. Today, these three key leaders were unable to reconcile their differences and find areas of agreement beyond merely struggling for independence.
Matthew Hassan Kukah
Kukah
18 Years after First Attempt, NISO Successfully Aligns Nigeria’s Power Grid with Niger, Benin,
Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja
The newly created Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) yesterday announced that it had successfully carried out the long-awaited synchronisation test between the Nigerian power grid and countries in the West African sub-region.
A statement co-signed by the Chairman, Board of Directors of NISO, Adesegun Akin-Olugbade and its Managing Director/Chief Executive, Bello Mohammed, said the feat was achieved in collaboration with the West African Power Pool Informa-
tion and Coordination Centre (WAPP-ICC).
According to the statement, the test was conducted on Saturday, November 8, 2025, between 05:04 hours and 09:04 hours, and marked a major breakthrough in the ongoing effort to establish a unified West African electricity grid operating at a single frequency.
It stated that although several synchronisation arrangements had been proposed in the past, the only known physical synchronisation attempt took place in 2007 and lasted for about seven minutes before
being discontinued.
Following renewed engagements and enhanced coordination between NISO and the WAPP-ICC, the exercise, it said, has now been successfully accomplished through improved system monitoring, stricter frequency control, harmonised operational standards, and real-time communication among participating control centres.
“The Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO), in collaboration with the West African Power Pool Information and Coordination Centre (WAPP-ICC), has
successfully carried out the long-awaited synchronisation test between the Nigerian power grid which includes Niger Republic and parts of Benin and Togo and the rest of the West African power grid,” the statement emphasised.
The synchronisation, it said, connects Area 1 (Nigeria, Niger, and parts of Benin and Togo) with Areas 2 and 3 (the rest of West Africa), creating a single operational grid that enhances reliability, stability, and cross-border energy exchange across the Economic Community of West African Countries
Togo, Others
(ECOWAS) region.
The initiative, according to NISO, aims to achieve operational unification of the regional grid, improve system reliability through shared reserves, enable costeffective power generation and trading under the West African Electricity Market (WAEM), and strengthen institutional cooperation among member system operators.
“For Nigeria, this achievement provides multiple benefits, including unlocking stranded generation capacity, enabling energy exports and foreign exchange earnings,
improving grid resilience, and reinforcing the country’s leadership role in regional energy integration.
“It also opens access to donor funding for priority transmission projects such as the North Core Project in Birnin Kebbi and the Ajegunle 330 kV Substation in Lagos State.
“The successful synchronisation marks a historic milestone in regional energy cooperation and demonstrates NISO’s technical capacity to manage complex grid operations in line with international standards,” it added.
looking at how Trump can help facilitate the break-up of Nigeria. “ExNigeria” is already a popular topic on social media. An audit of social media has shown that most of the accounts amplifying “Christian genocide” are pro-IPOB. But Prof Chukwuma Soludo, the Anambra governor, had this to say: “Christians [are] killing Christians [in the south-east]. The people in the bushes are Emmanuel, Peter, and John, all Christian names… they have maimed and killed thousands of our youths.” This can complicate the agenda of the lobbyists.
Before Trump drops his bombs, therefore, I would like to keep him up to speed on the Nigerian situation. There are at least five dimensions to the insecurity: (1) terrorism (2) insurgency (3) banditry and kidnapping (4) farmers/herders clashes (5) communal conflicts. When Trump says “Islamic Terrorists”, I assume he means Boko Haram, founded in the early 2000s when President Olusegun Obasanjo was in power. They started as a bunch of zealots whose doctrine did not sit well with many Islamic clerics. Their first prominent victim was Sheikh Jaafar Mahmud Adam, who was gunned down during early morning prayers at the Dorayi Central Mosque, Kano, on April 13, 2007.
Boko Haram, whose core message centred on Good Muslim vs Bad Muslim, soon got on the nerves of politicians. The security agencies went after them. The first major crackdown was on July 26, 2009 in Bauchi. They were arrested and killed, and their mosques razed. They responded with an uprising in Maiduguri, their headquarters. Ustaz Mohammed Yusuf, the founder, was captured and summarily executed. That resulted in the launch of their full-scale terror campaign: they started making bombs, first targeting the police, before unleashing horror on motor parks, buildings, churches and mosques, mostly in Abuja, Kano, Borno
MADE IN CHINA
In the wake of President Trump’s “gunsa-blazing” threat against Nigeria, we may think we have found a friend in China, with Ms Mao Ning, spokesperson for its foreign ministry, saying: “As Nigeria’s comprehensive strategic partner, China firmly opposes any country using religion and human rights as an excuse to interfere in other countries’ internal affairs, and threatening other countries with sanctions and force.” I hope we did not take that to the bank. The last thing China wants to be involved in is war. It is busy expanding its place in the global economy as well as its exploitation of Africa’s resources and colonisation of its markets. China will not lift a finger for anybody. Fact.
and Kaduna. The bombing campaign now appears to be distant history.
On the other hand, the insurgency is still very much alive, specifically in the northeast. Insurgents typically seek to conquer a territory to establish political authority. Between 2012 and 2015, we lost significant territory, equal to the size of Belgium, in the north-east to the Boko Haram insurgents. President Goodluck Jonathan once declared emergency rule in parts of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa to push them back. The reason given for the postponement of the 2015 elections was to intensify the war against insurgency, which recorded notable progress. Under President Muhammadu Buhari in 2016, they were dislodged from most parts of Borno. But the more they die, the more they multiply.
The third dimension to the insecurity is banditry — typified by looting and shooting with no declared political agenda. For over a decade, this has been ravaging north-western Nigeria, full of ungoverned spaces, with Zamfara state as the epicentre. I started monitoring this in 2012. It, maybe, started with cattle rustling, leading to herders arming themselves. The herders became a menace too and rural communities started hiring foreign gunmen for protection. Illegal mining, believed to be the bread and butter of some local politicians, entered the mix. In the midst of the anarchy, kidnapping for ransom took the centre stage. The crime began to spread to other parts of the north and the south.
The perennial herders/farmers clashes add another dimension to the insecurity. These conflicts are as old as I can remember and were common in the north but became politically explosive as they spread to the Middle Belt and many parts of the south. I grew up witnessing herders/farmers clashes. As I pointed out in my previous essay, when Fulani herders ravage the farms of Hausa or Kanuri farmers in Jigawa or Borno state, the
ensuing fracas is classified as herders/farmers clash since religious framing is impossible while ethnic mapping will be odd. But when the herders destroy farms in predominantly Christian areas in the north, the resultant clashes inevitably wear a religious toga. Communal conflicts constitute the fifth dimension of the insecurity. Such conflicts are all over the country. Some have gone dormant. In southern Nigeria, we had the Ogbeh-Ijoh war in Delta state between Urhobo and Itsekiri militias from 1997 and 2003. Over 700,000 people were displaced, in addition to the hundreds killed. The Umuleri-Aguleri hostilities in Anambra state consumed hundreds of lives. The Ife-Modakeke war in Osun state threw up many dead bodies. Ishiagu and Ezza communities in Ebonyi state fight over farmlands till today, leading to the loss of lives. Early this year, Ilobu and Ifon communities in Osun state fought, leavings many villagers dead, injured or displaced.
However, these bloody conflicts in the south do not fit into our narrative of ethno-religious killings because the warring communities are of the same religion or ethnicity. The same cannot be said of the north where most communal conflicts are framed as religious. Some conflicts are rooted in colonial, even precolonial, history in places like Kaduna, Plateau and Benue where there is also the issue of indigenes vs settlers. And this is also where the “Christian genocide” allegation is common. I want to believe that this is where Trump’s interest really lies. I sense that everything Trump has been saying is about the killings in Plateau and Benue states (Kaduna is now, thankfully, more peaceful). If I am correct, that means Trump’s bombs would not be as helpful to Nigeria as many people think. For one, I do not believe Boko Haram is involved in the Benue-Plateau killings. Those ones are more interested in carving a caliphate out of Borno state. If
And Four Other Things…
SWEET SIXTY
Two of my favourite people clocked 60 years of age within 24 hours of each other last week. Mr Olusegun Adeniyi, whom I call the Àkówè Kó Wúrà of the Federation, ran out of town and was not around to mark his birthday with us on Thursday, successfully evading his duty of giving us jollof rice and goat meat to thank God for his life. Dr Reuben Abati, whom we call “Monumental Reuben”, marked his birthday on Friday with a public event and presentation of three books. With what these two giants have given to the journalism profession, I am very proud to know them and be associated with them. I can only wish them greater attainments — with sound health and peace of mind. Amen.
KICK IN THE TEETH
I thought it was some tasteless joke when I read that FIFA had appointed South African officials to handle our do-or-die World Cup playoff clash against Gabon on November 13. While I understand that FIFA reserves the right to appoint officials, there is no denying the fact that there is no love lost between Nigeria and South Africa in view of recent events. In fact, the South African Sports Minister, Mr Gayton McKenzie, openly said recently that he does not want Nigeria to qualify for the World Cup. Could it be that our stock has fallen so badly on the African continent that we do not carry any weight any more — such that FIFA, despite the undercurrents, could ignore us like this? Offside.
THE TRUMP CHALLENGE AND A CALL FOR PATRIOTIC VOICES
a useful cautionary tale in crisis management. And this is why the government’s response to the challenge has been subtle and restrained. It is indeed the right thing to do, given the threat that it represents – albeit for the wrong reason. It may sound paradoxical, but the best way to prove that an argument proceeds from a false premise is by continually pointing out the falsehood therefrom. It’s truly heart-warming that the government has continued to navigate the present critical situation carefully, handling the matter diplomatically and laying out the facts and proper position of things to President Trump, the US Conservative Media, the evangelicals and politicians. That way, they can see their mistake and make informed decisions.
The ongoing momentum of the reforms undertaken by President Tinubu, which has engendered economic recovery, a slowdown in inflation, naira stability, and the gradual return of investors, must be maintained and carefully nurtured so that no development endangers it. The government must continue to stay on course. Remarkably, despite some fluctuations in the naira exchange rate over the past few days,
the global investor confidence in the growing positive prospects of the Nigerian economy has remained on the rise. This is evident in the oversubscription of the country’s $2.3 billion eurobond last week.
Reacting to the development, last Thursday, during the Federal Executive Council meeting in Abuja, as he inaugurated two new ministers appointed to fill the cabinet vacancies, President Tinubu disclosed that the Federal Government was engaging diplomatically with the world on the issue.
“The most important thing is the fact that despite the political headwinds and the fear of our people, we will continue to engage with partners. The success of the $2.3 billion eurobond, which investors oversubscribed by 400%, is the most reassuring. So, the task ahead is immense; we are engaging the world diplomatically, and we assure all of you that we will defeat terrorism in this country.”
With the recent rejig of the nation’s military and security apparatus, following the appointment of new service chiefs and a reshuffle within the intelligence circle, the battle against terrorism,
Trump bombs the “Islamic Terrorists”, it may be helpful in Nigeria’s war against terrorism and insurgency, but it will not end the killings in the Middle Belt, where people are fighting over land and grazing rights. That is not Boko Haram’s priority. Also, bombing the bandits in the north-west may help us, but it will not resolve the old issues between Christians and Muslims (if we choose to define them by religion) in the Benue-Plateau communities.
In other words, Trump’s “fast, vicious, and sweet” attack may not achieve much — and I am not even discussing the legality of such an action. It will not end the 16-year-old terrorism/insurgency in the north-east, or the decade-long banditry in the northwest, or the intractable conflicts framed as Christian/Muslim war in the Middle Belt dating back to maybe 100 years. Nigeria has lost thousands of soldiers and other security personnel in the war against Boko Haram, bandits and “unknown gunmen”. If terrorism were easy to “completely wipe out” as Trump suggests, the US would not have left Afghanistan after losing over 2,200 soldiers in the Asian country between 2001 and 2021.
As for “Operation exNigeria”, it will be interesting to see how this will be implemented. While it is easy to excise the south-east to form the Republic of Biafra, Christian populations are spread across the 19 northern states. I wonder if, and how, northern Christians will be physically relocated into one geographic space. Some things are easy to implement on social media but are very complicated in practical terms. Moreover, there are no reports of “Christian genocide” in northern states such as Adamawa, Nasarawa, Gombe, Kwara, Kogi and Taraba. How then will they figure in “Operation exNigeria”? I promise to keep watching this fascinating agenda with keen interest. Fingers crossed.
NO COMMENT
Another week, another new agency. There is currently a bill before the National Assembly to establish the National Electric Vehicle Development and Promotion Council “to coordinate policy implementation across all levels of government”. Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, the sponsor of the bill, said it is meant for Nigeria “to reduce carbon emissions, promote local manufacturing, and position Nigeria to benefit from the global shift towards clean mobility”. The bill proposes to ban petrol-powered vehicles in favour of electric vehicles. One thing I can see already is that we will need carbon-emitting generators, powered by petrol or diesel, to charge the electric vehicles. Hahahaha…
banditry, and violent crimes will be reinvigorated. President Tinubu implored Nigerians not to succumb to despair, assuring that the government would defeat every form of terrorism and secure every part of the country.
“Do we have problems? Yes. Are we challenged by terrorism? Yes. But we will defeat terrorism. We will overcome the CPC designation. Nigeria is one happy family, and we shall spare no effort until we eliminate all criminals from our society. We want our friends to help us as we step up our fight against terrorism, and we will eliminate it,” he said.
What the nation requires now are patriotic voices. Our leaders must stand up to be counted, while politicians, too, must drop their divisive togas and don the patriotic cap in defence of the country. The present challenge is neither about Nigerian Christians nor about the war against terrorists. There are clearly some other underlying motives. The US President cannot possibly love Nigeria more than the people of Nigeria. Former Kano State governor and National Leader of the Nigeria National Peoples Party, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, and
former Foreign Affairs Minister and ex-Jigawa State governor, who is also a top chieftain of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Sule Lamido, have seen through this unfair designation and have led the way in this direction.
More Nigerian leaders need to speak up as statesmen. By presenting the facts to President Trump and the international community in a convincing and non-adversarial manner, we must demonstrate that we are not a disgraced people and that Nigeria is by no means a “disgraced country.”
In all of this, though, we mustn’t fail to note the befuddling silence in the typically voluble quarters of our political space. So, it is fitting to ask: Where are former President Olusegun Obasanjo and his former deputy and defeated PDP 2023 presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, who is preparing for another presidential run in 2027, at this critical moment?
•Rahman is Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Special Duties.
ENGAGEMENTS
The Trump Threat: Quantum of Errors
Donald Trump’s gunboat foreign policy of unguarded words and unguided targeting has taken aim at a difficult target: Nigeria. Nigeria is in the gunsights. But it is a wrong choice. Nigeria is huge, complex, amorphous and a geo strategic nightmare. Though divided by diverse faiths and cultures, Nigerians have , curiously, after over six decades emerged as one people. We are united by our defects and strengths. Interestingly, the most unique uniting factor among Nigerians is the co-existence of the world’s two dominant religions as a permanent and axiomatic reality.We value our tenuous reality but are forever looking out for each other especially when confronted by a common external adversary.
In the past one and half decades, violence and death have become part of our new normal. Boko Haram and allied religious groups have killed many. Freelancecriminalsandcasualkillershaveclaimed manycasualties. ThedeadarebothChristians,Muslimsandinnocentbystanders.ManyNigerianshave died from causes other than their faith. In Nigeria’s persisting insecurity people die travelling to seek life. Others die on their way to the farm. Some also die on their way to and from work in cities.
Characterising Nigeria’s killing industry as antiChristian genocide is ignorant and mischievous. Nigeria has a problem of safety of life irrespective of where you face to worship. Insecurity has made the country dangerous for people irrespective of faith and affiliation.Violence and unplanned death follows people around the country. Mostly in the mid sections of the country, frictions over land resources and grazing space have degenerated intomasskillingsamongrivalcommunities.Settled farmers get killed defending their farmland and crops. Herders kill and get killed for grazing spaces fortheircattle.Mattersoffaithareinextricablytied totheseissuesofeconomicsurvival.Inadominantly MuslimandChristiannation,itiseasytoseereligious dominance in nearly every crisis.
Those Nigerians excited about the prospect of a US intervention had better think again. Let us go beyondTrump’sshowmanshipandbluster.America has deep interests behind this threat. Direct accesstoNigeria’sover30billionbarrelsofoilmeans something to America’s imperial mindset. Our gas supply is an attraction as well. Vast deposits of all kinds of minerals including rare earth minerals is an additional irresistible allure. Our market is vast with close to 300 million people . The competing Chinesepresenceinoureconomyisbig, expanding and enviable.
For a global power with a huge appetite for spheres of influence and limitless resources, the US cannot ignore Nigeria for too long. China as a competing influence in Nigeria may have vast economic influence and interest in Nigeria. But it will not go beyond cheap loans and infrastructure contracts.Itsforeignpolicyavoidsthecommitment ofChinesemilitaryforcesoutsideChina.TheChinese willsellyougunsandteachyouhowtooperatethem buttheywillnotsendtheirsoldierstodieintropical forests and open savannahs.
Americahasnoacumenforfixingnations.Though exceptional in self healing, America cannot fix other lands. Even under its best leaders, America is best at ruining those nations where it intervenes abroad.Evenwiththebestintentions,Americahas never been a nation builder.Vietnam, Afghanistan, Kuwait, Iraq, Libya…Syria…have all been ruined by American military intervention. Kuwait saw the dangerofprolongedAmericanpresenceandopted to treat the Americans as liberation contractors. Kuwait paid them $16 billion(49 billion in today’s value) in cash to get out fast after liberating them from Saddam Hussein.
In all cases, any land visited by American intervention forces ceases to exist or is destroyed for decades. America’s embrace is a hug of death. No nation touched by it remains whole again. Even thoseitnowclaimsas‘friends’andalliesaremerely convalescents from that embrace of death. Japan and South Korea are lands mortality injured by the lethalAmericanembrace.HiroshimaandNagasaki, two of the world’s most vast killing reminders ever are indelible. Lives damaged by the scalds of war remain as reminders of this lethal embrace. And successiveAmericanregimesstillcallJapan‘friend’ of America? And they stage an annual memorial to remind the Japanese of that baptism of blood. With a friend like that, who needs an enemy? Americastartsoutinaforeignescapadepretending a messianic role. It takes what it wants from the invaded territory and quits later in disarray.
•Trump
The escape from Saigon and Kabul are instructive.Today, the trumpeted saviour ofnationscanhardlysaveitself.Americais todayabrokengiant.Itisashadowofitself, nowamuseumofitsfounders’democratic ideals.Ithasmurdereddemocracy,diversity and justice while waiting on the queue for admission into the league of Third World authoritarian nations.
The US threat to intervene militarily in Nigeria ostensibly to protect Nigerian Christians is a typical Trump fake narrative. The inventor of ‘fake news’ is wrong as usual. Nigerian Christians are not under agenocidalthreat.YesNigerianChristian’s have fallen victim to Nigeria’s embarrassing insecurity especially in the hands of Boko Haram and allied Sahelian jihadist terrorists. So also have other innocent Nigerians who neither go to mosque or church. Churches and mosques have been bombed. Terrorists have attacked and stormed markets, places of worship and homes. The killers are fundamentalist jihadists as well as casual bandits and other criminals taking advantage of an atmosphere of lax security.
The most organized club of killers in Nigeria happens to be Boko Haram and its successor affiliates. Boko Haram is a fundamentalist religious group but its aimsarebeyondfaithandsect.Ithaskilled many people irrespective of faith. They are territorial and pseudo civilizational in a decadent sense. Their nuisance and disruptive impact spread throughout the Sahel: Burkina Faso, Mali, Guinea, Niger, Chad etc. The same America set up the Africa Command of the US Central Command(AFRICOM)tohelp fightJihadistsin the Sahel with little result to date.
The threat of war on Nigeria over this alleged anti Christian genocide is therefore one amongTrump’s obsessions with wars and shooting. He had bombed Iran, is currently shooting randomly at boats suspected to be ferrying narcotics gangs offthecoastsofVenezuelaandColombia. Heandhisadolescentsecretaryofdefence haverenamedtheDepartmentofDefence as‘DepartmentofWar’:howchildish?These
are the actions of a president who openly hustled a few months ago for the Nobel Peace Prize. The pursuit of global peace through sporadic and indiscriminate foolish unprovoked acts of war is the path of a deranged king!
In the unlikely event however of a US military intervention in Nigeria, the invaders will find many opponents. China has openly expressed its opposition. The EU has said it stands by Nigeria. in Nigeria itself, the following array of adversaries arewaiting:theNigerianmilitarywhosejobswould be on the line, Muslims who would find support fromMiddleEastradicalgroups,ordinaryNigerians whose reality would be disrupted
The avoidable implications of a direct US intervention would therefore be immense and immediate . Nigeria as the world has come to know it will cease to exist. It would be a military catastrophe and humanitarian disaster of the greatest magnitude in history . The outflux of refugeesfromNigeriawilloverwhelmWestAfrica, Western Europe and even the US. The lesson of our history is that Nigerians are best left alone in their land to sort out their problems.
Direct US military intervention will in addition neutralize Nigeria’s residual capacity for internal cohesion.Themilitarywillbedestroyedalongwith the police, State security and other structures. Over 300 million people in more than 250 ethnic affiliationswillbeunleashedwithoutorder,controls and a government. A quantum of hunger, poverty and unrivaled lawlessness will create the world’s most dangerous territorial space. Sheer anarchy unleashed by the greed of an unguarded super powerandtheineptitudeoffoolishpoliticaleliteat home.ThomasHobbescouldneverhaveimagined so hopeless a state of nature.The killings that the Americanscametoendwillthenknownoboundaries: Christians killing Muslims and Vice versa, the poor killing the rich, inter ethnic militias clashing, lawless youth squads roaming the streets and butchering even the American messianic invaders.The messiahs will turn into evil villains and the victims of yesterday will become aggressors. An uncontrollable racketeering in black market arms will thrive. Eventually, the Americans will flee at the sight of the messTrump will have gotten them into.Trump’s greatest legacy will be Armageddon in Africa!
The rich Nigerian Christian leaders who have funded this anti Nigerian lobby together with their
Christian Evangelical right wing collaborators in America need to understand the full implications of what they are about to set off.
Similarly, the bulk of the Nigerian diaspora who are celebrating the Trump ‘support’ need to have their heads re-examined. Home would be on fire and unrecognisable. No one in their right mind will look forward to home when it is a ruin of war. Only insane people openly call for their homestead t be turned into a theatre of war.
There is a diplomatic way out. Tinubu should speakwithTrumpthewayZelenskyhasbeendoing. Humourthetyrantandhishugeego.QuicklyAppoint a diplomatic liaison to engage withWashington on this misperception.
For the Nigerian political class, the hour calls for greater seriousness. Running from pillar to post in searchofexcusesamongthemselveswillnothelpthe politicians.Innotguaranteeingsecurity,thegovernmenthasfailed.Themostelementaryresponsibility of a state is to guarantee the security 0f all who live withinoflifeandpropertyofallinitssovereignspace. Theconceptofterritorialintegrityofthestatemakes no room for the existence of ‘ungoverned spaces’. A nation that allows for ungovernable spaces to the extent of negotiating boundaries of sovereignty with criminal contestants of power has lost it all. The most fundamental definition of sovereignty is total unconditional command and control of the entirenationalterritoryandallthatgoesonwithinit.
The National Assembly needs to quit being a conclave of overpaid entertainers. It needs to stiffen the penalties for terrorism, crimes in religious locations, crimes motivated by faith. Existing inter faith bodies need to be reinforced and strengthened. Governors of states with inter religiousclashesneedtolegislateboundarieswhich shouldbetemporarilymannedbynationalsecurity personnel 24/7.
On the general governance front, there is work to be urgently done. The Defence establishment responseshouldnowbemorespecialisedandtime bound with performance deadlines and targets. Tenure of commanders and service chiefs should betiedto performance.Themilitaryoptionopento bothNigeriaandtheUSisnotinvasionorsenseless air strikes. It is collaboration in training and intelligence gathering. Nigeria needs US assistance to overcome its insecurity. The US needs a safe, fair and stable Nigeria to better understand the emerging Africa.
Chelle Recalls Okoye, Ejuke, Awaziem, Others in Super Eagles’ 24-man African Playoff Squad
Duro Ikhazuagbe
Super eagles
Head Coach, eric Sekou Chelle, has recalled Udinese safe hands, maduka okoye; Sevilla winger, Chidera ejuke, and Nantes defender, Chidozie Awaziem in his 24-man list for next week’s 2026 FIFA World Cup African Playoff Tournament in rabat, morocco.
Also listed in the playoff
2026 wOrLD CUp
squad is Hull City’s Semi Ajayi who will miss Nigeria’s game against Gabon for the second booking he picked up in the last qualifier against Benin Republic. Ajayi will however be eligible for the next stage of the Playoff should Nigeria advance to play the winner of the clash between Cameroon versus D.r. Congo. The team is not different from the revamped Super eagles squad that beat both
...FIFA to Host World Cup Playoffs Draw in Zurich on Nov 20
The final pathways to the gamechanging FIFA World Cup 2026 will be mapped out when the draw for the FIFA World Cup 2026 Playoff Tournament and the European Playoff draw take place at the Home of FIFA in Zurich, Switzerland, on Thursday, 20 November 2025.
The draws will define the routes the 22 competing nations – six via the Playoffs Tournament and 16 through European Playoff matches – will need to successfully navigate to seal a spot at the first-ever 48-team FIFA World Cup, which will be staged in Canada, mexico and the United States from Thursday, 11 June to Sunday, 19 July 2026.
The draws will be staged back-to-back, with the draw for the FIFA World Cup 2026 Playoff Tournament commencing at 13:00 CET, followed by the european Playoff equivalent.
The draws will take place just two days after the completion of the November 2025 international match window,
which promises to be another action-packed period as the list of qualified nations for the 23rd edition of the FIFA World Cup continues to take shape.
Twenty-eight teams have already booked their places at next year’s historic tournament, with a further 14 nations – three from CoNCACAF and 11 from UeFA – set to punch their tickets to the finals via confederation qualifying this month.
The November international window will also define which teams from the AFC, CAF and CoNCACAF that will join bolivia (CoNmeboL) and New Caledonia (the oFC) at the six-nation FIFA Playoff Tournament, as well as the 16 countries that will compete in the European Playoffs, during the international match window from 23 to 31 march 2026.
The FIFA Play-Off Tournament will feature two finals where the winners of the two semi-finals between the unseeded teams will face the two seeded teams, with the eventual winners securing two spots at the FIFA World Cup 2026.
Lesotho and benin last month to advance to the Playoffs.
Sevilla striker Jerome Akor, who broke through last month, gets another chance to shine again with the Super eagles, while key stars like victor osimhen, Ademola Lookman, Samuel Chukwueze, Alex Iwobi and Wilfred Ndidi keep their places.
Surprisingly, Paul onuachu who is the second highest scorer in the Turkish Super Lig on seven goals from 11 matches
was left out. onuachu is just one goal behind leader eldor Shomurodov of basaksehir who has eight goals in 12 games. Four other players are on six goals while osimhen is down the ladder on just three goals from eight matches in the Turkish topflight.
exciting young defender, benjamin Fredericks kept his place in the Nigerian team same as midfielder Frank Onyeka. Raphael Onyedika, Tolu Arokodare and olusegun olakunle are also on the roster.
Nigeria will next Thursday take on Gabon in the first
semi-final scheduled for the 22,000 – capacity Complexe Sportif Prince Heritier moulay Al Hassan in rabat, with Cameroon confronting the Democratic republic of Congo in the other semi-final at the 18,000 – capacity El-Barid Stadium, also in rabat.
The invited players are scheduled to fly into Morocco from their different bases in Europe and elsewhere, to converge in rabat on monday, 10th November.
THe iNViTeD PLaYerS Goalkeepers: Stanley Nwabali (Chippa United,
South Africa); Amas obasogie (Singida blackstars, Tanzania); Maduka Okoya (Udinese FC, Italy) Defenders: William ekong (Al-Kholood, Saudi Arabia); Calvin bassey (Fulham FC, england); oluwasemilogo Ajayi (Hull City, england); bright osayi-Samuel (birmingham City, england); bruno onyemaechi (olympiakos, Greece); Chidozie Awaziem (Nantes FC, France); Zaidu Sanusi (FC Porto, Portugal); benjamin Fredericks (Dender FC, belgium)
Soname: I Sell Players Abroad to Keep Remo Stars Afloat in NPFL
Blessing Ibunge in port
Harcourt
Proprietor of Nigerian Premier Football League (NPFL) champions, remo Stars, billionaire Kunle Soname, has revealed that he sells players overseas for the team to stay afloat.
Speaking in an interview with Segun odegbami’s eagle7 Fm radio yesterday,
Soname stressed that money from foreign transfers of players have financed the NPFL champions. “The major income is from trading in players,” began Soname. “For the past three, four seasons, I have not put a dime of my money to run the club. We have to sell to remain afloat.”
The Remo Stars owner insisted that there is not enough money in the NPFL, where the average wage is from N600,000, N700,000. He however counseled
that the league needs to be better organised for clubs make money.
“The money is at Beyond Limits (his academy), where this year alone we have made over $600,000, but the league (NPFL) is the hold standard of football in any country.
“A well-run academy, that’s where the money is right now, the raw talents are placed on a global platform
“Pay a player N1.5 million a month, he will be patient
NPFL: Violence Erupts as Barau FC Hold Hosts Katsina Utd
The Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) m atch-day 12 clash between Katsina United and visiting barau FC at the mohammed Dikko Stadium in the Katsina State Capital trended for the wrong reasons on social media on Sat-
urday after the visiting team equalised the earlier edge of the host team.
Pictures of the scorer, Nana Abraham, lying lifeless on the turf,surfaced online, showing blood stains on his neck. expectedly, a section of the online media reported that the barau FC player’s throat was slit by an enraged fan not happy with his Katsina United held at home.
others more daring, even reported that a player was killed! but after the pandemonium that followed the equaliser in the 69th minute, law enforcement agents present at the stadium restored order while the game continued till regulation time. The match ended 1-1 with no further signs of disturbances.
to wait in the country to play and sustain his family.
He said it is not enough for the NPFL to be put on television as it also has to be marketed properly.
“We’re moving forward, but the pace has not been as it should be,” he declared.
Super Eagles will regroup in Rabat, Morocco on Monday ahead of their 2026 World Cup African Playoff opening game against Gabon on Thursday
US President Donald Trump has finally created space for Nigeria in his busy schedule.
“If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the U.S.A. will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities,” he posted on Truth Social. “I am hereby instructing our Department of War to prepare for possible action. If we attack, it will be fast, vicious, and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our CHERISHED Christians! WARNING: THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT BETTER MOVE FAST!” Please note: the capitals are his.
Almost every country has been at the receiving end of Trump’s vicious vituperations and tariff tantrums, but I felt Nigeria was too insignificant to have its own slot on his
schedule. He then dropped the fully loaded, ominous post. One, he said “if the Nigerian government continues to allow the killing of Christians”. That means he believes the
government wilfully allows the killings. Many Nigerians have argued that the government has been pampering the so-called repentant terrorists and bandits, thereby sending the wrong signals about its seriousness. Two, Trump said “the U.S.A. will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria”. Aid, many activists will argue, is political.
Three, Trump threatened to “completely wipe out the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities”. He thinks he can wipe out the terrorists (this is good news to me) and seems to attribute all the “horrible atrocities” to them. Four, he said the US attacks “will be fast, vicious, and sweet”. That is, ending terrorism is “easy peasy”. Five, he warned the Nigerian government to move “very fast”, implying that we can wipe out the terrorists but we don’t want to do so. But contrary to widespread reports, Trump — who says there is “white genocide” in South Africa — did not mention “Christian genocide” regarding Nigeria. He spoke of the
TUNDE RAHMAN
“persecution” and “killing” of Christians. “Christian genocide” was coined from a report by InterSociety, an NGO based in Onitsha, Anambra state, which the military has linked to the separatist Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB). The NGO has denied the allegation, but it classifies the killing of “unknown gunmen” in the south-east by security agencies as part of the “Christian genocide”. Instructively, it is InterSociety’s data that is being used by the American lobbyists. However, it appears Trump did not get the memo as he seems only concerned about “Islamic Terrorists” and northern Christians. That may be why Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the IPOB leader, called on him to also probe the killing of “Judeo-Christians” in the south-east. Kanu had to speak out. The powerful lobbyists who successfully sold the genocide narrative to Trump are not that interested in northern Christians. They are obviously
The Trump Challenge and a Call for Patriotic Voices
In an age when the lines between truth and falsehood are getting increasingly blurred, I was nonplussed when President Trump labelled Nigeria a Country of Particular Concern on October 31. My incredulity was heightened given that his action stemmed from unproven allegations of genocide against Christians. Was it another deepfake facilitated through AI or simply a case of mistaken identity?
I was of the view that President Trump might have actually meant another country, and not Nigeria. He had, after all, adopted a similar approach in December 2020, which proved quite unsuccessful. President Biden, who succeeded him in office, rightly removed the designation barely a year later, in November 2021, convinced, as most had been, that Trump’s action was based on unverified allegations.
The US President has since doubled down on the labelling, threatening to take military action against Nigeria’s Islamists and terrorists.
My scepticism derived from the premise that the facts on the ground, indeed the Nigerian situation, do not align with what can be termed a Christian genocide or genocide of any sort, as exemplified in the recent Israeli massacre of Palestinian people, including children.
It is thus not surprising that top Nigerian government functionaries – from Foreign Affairs Minister Yusuf Tuggah and Minister of Information and National Orientation Idris Mohammed, as well as most commentators –have already debunked the claim of Christian genocide or wholly Christian killings in Nigeria. The country may still be having some security issues to contend with; however, they argue that there are no targeted killings of Christians, let alone a Christian genocide.
Indeed, a recent investigative report by the BBC Global Disinformation Unit has picked holes in the threadbare claims of a “Christian genocide” in Nigeria. In very stark details, the report highlights how the International
Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety) and allied Igbo ethnic advocacy and pro-Biafra groups circulated inflated figures and unverified narratives.
Titled “Are Christians Being Persecuted in Nigeria as Trump Claims?” the report was authored by Olaronke Alo and Chiamaka Enendu of the BBC Global Disinformation Unit, along with a Lagos-based journalist, Ijeoma Ndukwe. The writers examined the origins and veracity of claims that over 125,000 Christians had been killed and 19,000 churches burned down in Nigeria since 2009.
Apparently driven by some ulterior motive, when contacted by the BBC, Intersociety, which first disseminated the allegation of Christian killings, failed to provide enumerated data or verifiable sources to substantiate its claims and demonstrate the integrity of the figures and their conclusions. Instead, the organisation accused the BBC of being politically compromised. Unfortunately, these unreliable data cobbled
by Intersociety were the exact figures cited by the Conservative Media in the US, and prominent politicians like Senator Ted Cruz and Congressman Riley Moore. Sadly, these same figures were what President Trump relied upon in his designation of Nigeria as a CPC. The point is: there is no Christian persecution or mass killings in Nigeria. There are no statesanctioned killings of Christians. The state does not condone it, as Nigeria has no state religion. President Bola Tinubu is a moderate Muslim who allows religious freedom in his household. He is not a religious fundamentalist. A man who so liberally allows religious freedom in his household cannot conceivably turn around and disallow the same in the larger society.
Beyond that, however, and that piece of good journalism and useful revelation by the BBC, which laid bare the claim of Nigerian Christian genocide, the CPC labelling nonetheless offers
Trump
L-R: Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Ambassador Babagana Kingibe; Prince Abdulazeez Al Saud; Governor of Akwa Ibom, Pastor Umo Eno; Chairman of Oriental Energy Resources, Alhaji Mohammed Indimi; Governor of
Borno State, Babagana Umara Zulum; Governor of Adamawa State, Amado Umaru Fintiri; Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Heineken Lokpobiri; and Chief Executive Officer of Dry Docks Dubai, Captain Rado Antolovic, during the sailaway of the Floating Production Storage and Offloading vessel (FPSO) EMEM, in Dubai, UAE…yesterday
